Last Update on: September 1st, 2023 at 11:06 am
Ahead of the much-awaited India vs Pakistan clash in the ongoing Asia Cup 2023, Pakistan spinner Shadab Khan has opened up on the last meeting between the two sides. The arch-rivals’ last meeting came in the T20 World Cup last year when they played out an absolute classic in front of a huge crowd at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Chasing 160, India were reeling at 31 for 4. Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya steadied the ship but Pakistan managed to remain on the front foot for the majority of the game. India looked all but out of the contest when they needed an improbable 28 runs from the final 8 balls.
Even though Virat Kohli was still at the crease, not many were expecting him to do what he did against Pakistan’s bowling lineup. He finished the 19th over by hitting Haris Rauf for two consecutive sixes including the iconic six that went straight over the bowler’s head. In the final over, Mohammad Nawaz failed to defend the 16 runs and Virat Kohli took India home in a thrilling fashion. He remained unbeaten on 82.
Shadab Khan opens up on India vs Pakistan clash:
Ahead of the Asia Cup encounter between India and Pakistan, Shadab Khan recalled Virat Kohli’s masterclass against the Men in Green last year. Heaping praise on the former India skipper, the leg-spinner said that Virat Kohli is capable of producing such stunning knocks at will.
“He is a world-class player, definitely. You have to plan a lot to face him. Anyway, in international cricket, there are a lot of mind games, because you definitely have the skill to reach that level. But how you read each other’s minds, the bowler and the batter, how they read each other’s minds, and it also depends on what the situation is,” Shadab Khan said on the Star Sports show ‘Follow the Blues’.
“The kind of batsman that Virat Kohli is, the way he has performed against us, even in the last match at the World Cup, I don’t think that if any other batsman in the world was in that situation, could have done that to our bowling line-up. And the beauty of it is that he can do this at any stage and at any time,” he added.
Meanwhile, India and Pakistan are scheduled to take on each other on Saturday (September 2) in Pallekele. It will be India’s first game of the tournament while Pakistan will be playing their second. The Men in Green began their campaign earlier this week with a thumping 238-run win over Nepal.