IND vs PAK, T20 World Cup 2022 Stat Highlights: Virat Kohli Stands Tall as India Start Campaign With Sensational Win

Cometh the hour, cometh the man! Virat Kohli surely knows how to turn up and perform, especially in big matches as his fine 82* off 53 balls helped India pull off a win against Pakistan from a losing position on Sunday, October 23. A fully packed MCG witnessed arguably one of the greatest ever batters in the game do his thing as Virat Kohli beautifully paced his innings and then went for the big shots in time to fetch India a winning start to their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign. Pakistan had control of the game for a good part and even in the 19th over when Haris Rauf had bowled what seemed to be a good over, a win looked well in sight for the Green Shirts. Rohit Sharma Lifts Up Virat Kohli To Celebrate As India Beat Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2022 Encounter (Watch Video)

But Virat Kohli had other plans as he struck two sixes to shift the momentum towards India before Mohammad Nawaz came on to bowl the final over, where India won off the last ball. The chase looked very difficult for India at one point in time when they had lost four wickets and were at 45/4 at one stage. The early loss of skipper Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and the dynamic Suryakumar Yadav dented India early on but a steady 113-run stand off 78 balls between Kohli and Hardik Pandya brought India back and gave them hope. The Pakistan spinners, especially Mohammad Nawaz had a forgettable day as he eventually ended up conceding 42 runs off his four overs. Shadab Khan bowled better as he ended with figures of 0/21 in his four overs.

The fast bowlers brought Pakistan into the game, especially Haris Rauf, who got rid of both Rohit (4) and SKY (15). Naseem Shah once again dismissed KL Rahul after doing so back in the Asia Cup. India had themselves gotten off to a flying start with both Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh posing a lot of challenges for the Pakistan top-order. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan fell to Arshdeep Singh and a 76-run stand between Shan Masood and Iftikhar Ahmed helped Pakistan get their innings back on track. While Iftikhar smashed a fifty and got out, Masood carried on and continued to absorb the pressure. He ran out of partners at the other end before Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf played some lusty blows to help the Green Shirts get to a good total on this spicy MCG track. ICC T20 World Cup 2022 Points Table Super 12 Updated Live: India Rise to Top Spot in Group 2 With Win in Final Over Thriller Against Pakistan

IND vs PAK, T20 World Cup 2022 Stat Highlights:

#Virat Kohli slammed his 34th T20I fifty.

#He is also the highest-ever run-scorer in T20Is, surpassing Rohit Sharma

#India registered their highest run-chase against Pakistan.

#Shan Masood hit his 3rd T20I fifty.

#Iftikhar Ahmed scored his 2nd T20I fifty.

#This is the fourth occasion of India winning off the final ball in a T20I match.

#Virat Kohli-Hardik Pandya's 113-run partnership is highest for India for any wicket against Pakistan

#India's 31/3 in the powerplay was their lowest ever against Pakistan in T20 World Cups.

IND vs PAK Stat Highlights: 

With a big win under their belt, India would now hope to carry on with the same momentum when they next take on the Netherlands on October 27. Pakistan on the other hand, would aim to regroup and bounce back hard in the game against Zimbabwe on the same day.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 23, 2022 06:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).