India fell short by 10 runs against Pakistan during their 2022 Asia Cup Super 4s campaign, losing by five wickets in what was not the best start to their bid to reach the final for a second consecutive Asia Cup campaign. But a major positive for the side will be the much-needed, and awaited, return of vintage Virat Kohli, who reminded all of his threat with a 44-ball 60 that helped India to a competitive total of 182 for Pakistan to chase down.
Despite his efforts, India could not defend their total after a masterclass performance from Mohammad Rizwan as his side chased down the target with five wickets to spare.
At the post-match press conference, the former India skipper reiterated the importance of good mental health while playing an intensive sport like cricket, and spoke about the reasons for taking a break before the Asia Cup, "It was important for me to rediscover that drive and purity for the game again. When I'm happy in my space, then I know what I can do for the team. Me being in a bad space is neither good for the team nor for me.
"I think no one should run away from this, if someone is feeling negative or low, taking a break isn't a bad thing," he added.
Kohli was not in great touch heading into the Asia Cup and there were calls to push Suryakumar Yadav ahead of him on the ladder or even drop him from the team. While admitting that such opinions do matter to him, he believes that after hitting consecutive half centuries, first against Hong Kong, and then against Pakistan, he is finally enjoying his cricket, and this is important to him.
"I hope people will derive strength from that and address whatever they are feeling. We're all human, everyone can feel this way. But to recognise that and care about it is important. If you ignore it, you will get more frustrated. This is something I realised and I got a lot of help. I'm happy, I'm excited and having fun playing cricket again, which was the most important thing for me."
