- Monday, January 13, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
It was a special occasion for both himself and his team and Virat Kohli was desperate to see that it was a happy ending. One video that caught him towards the climax of the big clash between India and Pakistan in the ongoing Asia Cup tournament in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, also made it amply evident.
It was during the crucial 18th over in the Indian innings when Ravindra Jadeja (35 off 29 balls) and Hardik Pandya (33 not out off 17) were batting together. India required 32 runs then to overhaul the target of 148 that the men in green had set before them. Jadeja was facing debutant Naseem Shah and the young pacer delivered a massive blow to the defending champions in the fourth delivery by trapping him before the wickets. India were still needing 27 then.
Shah was in great pain at the moment and appealed for LBW (leg before wicket) even as he fell on the ground. The umpire raised his finger, leaving the Indian side and the fans shell shocked.
But Jadeja went for a review straightaway and found himself lucky as the third umpire saw that the ball had pitched a little outside the leg stump.
As the verdict came, the Indian side which badly needed Jadeja to stay at the wicket at the time, heaved a sigh of relief. The camera then shifted focus on Kohli and the man, who was playing his 100th T20 international, came up with a priceless reaction. He held his head with both hands and murmured “bach gaye” (we got saved) and then looked upwards towards the sky with a casual thanking gesture.
It was a vital moment in the game and Jadeja tonked the very next ball from a struggling Shah for a straight six, bringing down the equation to 21 balls from 13 games.
Jadeja though perished in the first ball of the final over from spinner Mohammad Nawaz but by then India had come close enough to the target and a cool-headed six from Pandya sealed it for Rohit Sharma’s men with two balls to spare.
Kohli, who made a comeback to the Indian side after a while, was the joint highest scorer with 35 (34 balls) but was criticised for getting out trying to clear the boundary soon after captain Rohit Sharma got dismissed.
