OTD In 2022 | When 'Chasemaster' Virat Kohli Snatched Victory From Jaws Of Defeat
Virat Kohli played a knock for the ages at MCG vs Pakistan (Twitter)
There are innings, and then there are masterpieces – composed under duress, honed by skill, and manifested in moments where mortals witness the extraordinary.
OTD in 2022: Virat Kohli's 82* led India to an improbable victory
One year ago today, the cricketing world was a front-row audience to such a masterclass authored by Indian stalwart Virat Kohli. It wasn't just a game of cricket; it was a maestro, with deft strokes, producing a gem on the grand stage of the Melbourne Cricket Ground, witnessed by a sea of 90,000 spectators.
India vs Pakistan - a narrative older than the players themselves, infused with passion and rivalry that goes far beyond the 22 yards. At the iconic MCG, amidst the roars and cheers of thousands, a classic tale was spun, and at the centre was a king reclaiming his throne.
A backstory marred by a previous defeat, a chase punctuated by early wickets, and a climax marked by an impossible victory - this was the setting where Kohli transformed myth into a man and back into a legend.
As the Melbourne night air was charged with excitement and nervousness, India's chase seemed to stutter and falter, like a protagonist facing his inner demons. The Pakistan pace battery, fierce and breathing fire, was scripting a narrative that seemed all too familiar. A script where India's chase was to be a tale of so-near-yet-so-far after they were reduced to 31/4 in 6.1 overs.
But every epic tale has its hero, and in the intimidating vastness of the MCG, against a script written by fate, Kohli rose. Each stroke of his bat, a brushstroke of defiance, painted a picture of incredible fight and resilience. With the company of Hardik Pandya, every run chiselled away at the ominous deficit, every boundary a glimmer of hope in the enveloping despair.
And then came the over where epics found their verse, and legends their voice. 28 needed from 8, an equation that spelt demise but also whispered of improbable legends. Kohli, amidst the deafening cheers of Pakistani fans, found those two sixes that stood tall amidst the ruins of trepidation.
The final over saw Kohli and Dinesh Karthik in the middle as Hardik was dismissed, bringing the equation down to 16 off 5. Karthik took a quick single, followed by Kohli securing two runs. The excitement reached its peak when Kohli sent a shot soaring over deep square leg for a six, which was also judged as a waist-high no-ball.
Mohammad Nawaz then delivered a wide. On the free-hit delivery, Kohli was bowled, but the ball zoomed past the stumps, allowing them to run three. With the pressure mounting and just two runs required from two balls, Karthik unfortunately lost his wicket.
Ravichandran Ashwin, stepping up to the pitch, demonstrated remarkable calmness by judiciously leaving a wide ball untouched. Finally, the off-spinner played a shot over the in-field, securing the decisive run and clinching the match for India.
As Sunil Gavaskar, Kris Srikkanth, and Irfan Pathan danced along the boundary ropes, the MCG found its unified voice, a nation believed. Believed in the impossible, in the magic of cricket, and in the myth, the man, the legend - Virat Kohli.
A year later, that night remains immortalised, where a beleaguered king ascended, not to a throne, but into a league of legends.
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