My job was to Control the Middle-Over Against Spinners: Virat Kohli

His rhythm was always associated with him while chasing, and now ever since the bowlers did most of the hard work, Kohli accomplished much. He has now, for the fifth time sealed Pakistan’s fate with in ICC events by scoring and remaining undefeated on fifty-five. Scoring his 51st century in the age will only boost his confidence in the ODI format. For the Latest Cricket Update; Click Here

Now that Virat Kohli is back, the game is once more his
Australia and England want to overcome their recent ODI setback in Lahore
Rickelton sets a competition record with his ton
Shubman Gill & Shami ton, Five-fer give India aa winning start
In the Champions Trophy opening, Latham and Young interrupt Pakistan’s celebration
Ahead of the Champions Trophy campaign opener against Pakistan, Kane Williamson accepts contracts with two sides after turning down New Zealand’s core contract
India suffers a devastating blow ahead of the Champions Trophy when a veteran departs the Dubai camp to go back home
It’s time to make amends for previous mistakes if the squad is to win
If we beat India but don’t win tournament: Before IND vs PAK Champions Trophy Match; Pakistan’s vice-captain’s big statement

He has not been scoring recently, which is why it was of utmost importance for him to unleash a ton and shrug off his Test troubles. One of the last ODI’s he scored was an event before the showpiece in Ahmedabad against England, where he got a 52. Adil Rashid found the perfect opportunity, along with the prior game in Cuttack where his spell was too much to handle. This Sunday, Kohli made sure that did not happen against Pakistan. He controlled the strike with Gill and Shreyas, which worked magically for him.

Kohli said, “it feels good to bat like that to help in qualifying. It feels good because we lost Rohit early on and had to change our mindset because of what happened in the last game.”

“Against the spinners I had to play risk free in the middle overs, but towards the end Shreyas pushed the score so I started getting a few boundaries as well, which helped me ease into the ODI game. I have a good sense of my game. I have to block out the noise, stay in my zone, control my energy, and control my thoughts,” he continued.

‘For now, it’s over’: Rizwan concedes Pakistan’s fate

No flag-waving frenzy, but Dubai turns up in large numbers

Pakistan would have desired for India’s chase to falter, but the stunning yorker from Shaheen Afridi that ousted Rohit Sharma did not impact them, and took full advantage of it. A considerable amount of that stems from the recent form of Shubman Gill, as he made quick work of Shaheen Afridi during the PowerPlay, especially now that he has just been crowned the world number one ODI batter. India scored 64 runs and lost 1 wicket in the first 10 overs, with Gill scoring 35 off 34 balls.

“People tend to confuse the concept of clarity but Shubham did not falter against Shaheen, he was proactive. As a result, he’s ranked the number one batter in the world. 70-80 runs are essential to score in the power play otherwise one is always in defense during the game. Kohli also mentioned Shreyas is doing exceedingly well inboth Indian matches and overseas,” he said.

Now Pakistan faces the embarrassing prospect of being eliminated from its own home Champions Trophy. This will surely come true if New Zealand manages to defeat Bangladesh on Monday (February 24). On the other hand, India has two wins under the belt and will not fight again until next Sunday when they have to face New Zealand. Kohli was optimistic about having a week’s break.

“Honestly, at 36, it feels exceedingly good. I will definitely kick back for a few days, as it takes so much out of me to put that amount of energy into every game,” he remarked.