India’s T20 World Cup campaign began on a sour note after going down against Pakistan in a high-octane encounter on October 24.
To make the matter worse, it was Pakistan’s first-ever win over their arch-rivals in a World Cup, breaking India’s near-three-decade supremacy in the marquee event.
After having lost the toss and put to bat first on a tricky batting surface, India lost their openers to Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi. It was captain Virat Kohli and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who steadied the innings and powered India to a respectable total of 151/7.
But in the end, the total wasn’t good enough for the opposition openers, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, who achieved the target without any hiccups in 17.5 overs and helped Pakistan clinch the match by 10 wickets.
Following India's embarrassing defeat, Kohli was seen praising Pakistan's efforts and also admitting that his team was outplayed by its nemesis. But one of Kohli’s remarks, however, didn’t go down well with former India all-rounder Ajay Jadeja.
“I heard Virat Kohli’s statement that day. He said when we lost two wickets, we fell behind in the match against Pakistan. I was disappointed with that," Jadeja said on Cricbuzz.
Jadeja also criticised Kohli’s approach during the all-important clash. “When a player like Virat Kohli is out there in the middle, there is no way the match has ended. He had not played even two balls and was thinking like that. So, it shows India’s approach,” he added.
India will now face New Zealand in a do-or-die situation on October 31 with the hope to register their first win of the tournament.
