New Delhi: After India’s first defeat to Pakistan by 10 wickets in the Super-12 stage of the 2021 T20 World Cup on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Indian captain Virat Kohli had to respond to tough questions at the post-match press conference. With the country disappointed with the very first defeat against Pakistan without getting a wicket, one of the media questioned Rohit Sharma’s place in the XI.
Virat Kohli was taken aback by the request and returned the favor by asking the media manager: “Do you want to drop Rohit Sharma from T20Is? “
“That’s a very brave question, what do you think sir?” Virat Kohli asked, before adding, “Because I played the XI, I thought it was the best. What are you thinking? What’s your opinion? Will you drop Rohit Sharma from the T20 internationals? Do you know what he did in the last game?
The skipper didn’t stop there and continued with a wry smile: “Amazing. Sir, if you want controversy, tell me first so that I can respond accordingly.
Sharma Mumbai Indians teammate Ishan Kishan in Mumbai failed to find a place in the XI and one of the questions was whether the former U19 skipper from India could find a place at the top of the table at the expense of Sharma.
He also said during the post-match presentation ceremony that he had no qualms about admitting that his team was “outclassed” by Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup here, but said that its players are not the ones who press the panic button.
Kohli said he accepts defeat and will learn from it, but has made it clear that he has treated all oppositions with equal respect.
“Cricket is beyond and above anyone and we definitely respect the game and we never take any opposition lightly nor do we distinguish between the oppositions.
“The day we didn’t play well, we accept it and also give credit to the opposition. We don’t create any other scenario to find out what went wrong and correct that to move forward in a positive way.”, did he declare.
Mohammed Rizwan and Babar Azam have both scored half-centuries on their way to an undefeated 152-point partnership. India failed to take a single wicket in the Pakistani innings. India put 151 on the board after Babar Azam won the toss and chose to bowl. Kohli got the best score with 57 in 48 balls. Rishabh Pant played a vital inning of 39 for 30 balls.
Kohli praised young fast pitcher Shaheen Shah Afridi, who rocked the Indian First Order by securing the wickets of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and later skipper Kohli in his second spell.
“He played really well with the new ball and hit the right areas to pick up the wickets. In T20 cricket it’s about running to pick up the wickets with the new ball and he certainly did and c he, therefore, deserves the credit.
Pakistan recorded their biggest international T20 victory, hammering India by 10 wickets in their opening game of the T20 World Cup, which was also their first against the neighbors in 13 attempts at the world meeting.
For the first time, India lost a T20I of 10 wickets and Pakistan won a T20I of 10 wickets. The undefeated 152-run partnership between Azam and Rizwan is the highest partnership for Pakistan against India for all T20I wickets.
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