‘Only you could do this’ - Virat Kohli praises 'freak' Glenn Maxwell after historic World Cup knock

The cricketing world was taken aback by Glenn Maxwell's phenomenal knock during Australia’s Cricket World Cup clash against Afghanistan at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The Aussie all-rounder struck an unbeaten 201 off 128 deliveries to hand his side a three-wicket win.

Maxwell has been gaining a lot of accolades from fans, cricket pundits as well as from fans for hitting one of the greatest innings in the history of the ODI World Cup. His Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) teammate, Virat Kohli was equally astounded by the Australian's knock and lavished praise on him.

The former India captain, who has witnessed Maxwell's firepower from close range, took to social media to laud him. “Only you could do this. Freak,” he wrote on his Instagram story.

Maxwell powers Australia to semi-finals 

Maxwell struck a record-breaking double century with the help of 21 boundaries and 10 maximums to help Australia seal a famous win over Afghanistan in Mumbai. As a result of the win, the five-time champions advanced to the semifinal of the ongoing competition.

Also check: Glenn Maxwell ODI Innings Performance

Speaking about the game, Afghanistan posted a reasonable target of 292 after winning the toss and deciding to bat first. Ibrahim Zadran was key for Afghanistan, scoring an unbeaten 129 off 143 deliveries. Notably, the opening batter added a new feather to his cap becoming the first Afghan batter to score a ton in an ODI World Cup.

Afghanistan ran riot from the beginning of the innings as they got four wickets within the first ten overs. However, Maxwell, who came to bat at no. 6 when Australia were reeling at 49/4. The Kangaroos were  almost out of the contest with seven wickets going down for 91 runs. However, Maxwell then staged an epic fightback for his side and Australia chased down the target with 19 balls to spare. For Afghanistan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Azmatullah Omarzai, and Rashid Khan, all picked up two wickets each.