‘It was their game to lose at one point’ - Wasim Jaffer lauds 'outstanding' Virat Kohli after match-winning show against Pakistan

Rohit Sharma-led team India pulled off a one from the jaws of defeat as they defeated Pakistan in their opening match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 in Melbourne. Virat Kohli’s brillaint knock handed them a win against the arch rivals in what proved to be a thriller of a contest.

The Men in Blue started off the first innings just as they wished for, however, Pakistan in response, eventually put up a competitive total on the board of a 160 in their 20 overs. As the Indian batters hit the ground, the side suffered as they lost wickets at regular intervals.

Just when it seemed like it was impossible for the side to chase down the total, Kohli came to rescue and rightfully announced his arrival at the grand stage. An unbeaten match winning knock of 82 off just 53 balls helped the Men in Blue win the high-octane clash.

Wasim Jaffer heaps praise on Virat Kohli

Wasim Jaffer was delighted over the sensational innings played by the former skipper that gave the side a victory.

“Stunning, I am at a loss for words. India were 45-4 after 10 overs, [they were] long way behind the game. Pakistan giving nearly 12 runs an over from there on, Melbourne’s big ground, I thought [all that] was highly unlikely that India will pull this off. But Virat Kohli, just outstanding!” Jaffer said on 'BatBricks7 presents Run Ki Runneeti show on CricTracker'.

“To produce an innings like this against Pakistan on such a big stage... At one stage I felt we were one short of a batter though Pandya (Hardik) got a 40, but he didn’t get that support from the other end. But he did it himself, outstanding, just outstanding. Pakistan messed it up, it was their game to lose. They were in that situation where they couldn’t lose the game but they made the mistake of playing Nawaz in the last over,” added Jaffer.