'He genuinely wanted him to score' - Nikhil Chopra lauds 'perfect senior' Virat Kohli for celebrating KL Rahul's half-century against Bangladesh

India recorded a crucial five-run win (D/L method) against Bangladesh to further cement their chances for a semi-final spot in the T20 World Cup 2022 on Wednesday (November 2). After a disappointing performance against South Africa, there was big pressure on the Indian team to avoid further slip-ups in the Super 12 Group 2 fixtures.

Once again, in-form batter Virat Kohli made his presence felt as he smashed unbeaten 64 runs off 44 balls to guide India to 184/6 total while batting first. And then Indian bowlers managed to defend the DLS revised 151-run target in 16 overs after the interruption by the rain. It was not a convincing effort fromt he Indian team who managed to win a game by just five runs despite posting a huge total. 

But apart from Kohli's match-winning knock and crucial two points, KL Rahul's return to form was a big positive for team India. The star opener scored only 22 runs from the opening three games in the tournament and was under a lot of pressure to perform against Bangladesh.

Virat Kohli is playing a senior player's role perfectly: Nikhil Chopra

Rahul smashed crucial 50 runs off just 32 balls with the help of three fours and four sixes and looked relieved while celebrating his fifty. But it was Kohli who looked more cheerful while greeting his teammate, which clearly highlighted his support for a struggling teammate. The former Indian cricketer Nikhil Chopra also lauded Kohli the way he celebrated Rahul's fifty.

"Virat Kohli is a player who glues the Indian batting order and soaks up the pressure. He never allows the pressure to go down the playing order and his contribution in team's win is clear to see. Kohli was happier than KL Rahul when he completed his half-century as he was seen spending time with the opener in a practice session ahead of the game," said Chopra in BatBricks7 Run Ki RunNeeti post-match show on CricTracker.

"He genuinely wanted him to score big against Bangladesh. He is playing a senior player's role perfectly as he is also guiding other players to come out of bad form which makes him a phenomenal player," he added.

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