Rohit Sharma-led India Team India advanced to the Super 4s stage of the on-going Asia Cup on Wednesday after beating Hong Kong by 40 runs. Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli were the stars of the match as the duo set an unbeaten score of 98 runs for the third wicket. India struggled at one point in the 13th over at 94/2, but Suryakumar completely changed the complexion of the game when he crushed an unbeaten 68 from just 26 balls, hitting 6 fours and 6 sixes. On the other hand, Kohli scored 59 out of 44 while India scored 192/2 in 20 overs.
“I am honored to interview SKY today, who had an excellent knock today. A knock that I thoroughly enjoyed from the other side. He came in and completely changed the momentum of the game on a field that wasn’t that great. was simple as he made it look, to be honest,” Kohli said in a video posted to BCCI’s official website.
From two great blows, a dominant partnership, mutual admiration and much more
– Half Centuries @imVkohli & @surya_14kumar chat #TeamIndia‘s win against Hong Kong – by @ameyatilak
Full interview #AsiaCup2022 https://t.co/Hyle2h3UBQ pic.twitter.com/39Ol62g2Qf
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 1, 2022
“Well done, it was a brilliant knock, I’ve seen so many from a distance when we play against each other in the IPL, or other teams get hit when we play for India,” he continued.
“But this was my first experience of seeing it up close. I was completely blown away,” exclaimed the former skipper.
“I just want to understand when you walked out, what was your mentality? You told me you already had something planned to see how the game went, so please explain,” he asked Suryakumar.
Suryakumar answered Kohli’s question and said, “First, I like hitting with him (Kohli). As we sat inside, Rishabh and I talked about how we would move the game forward as the wicket was a bit slow. When I went hitting , I was just trying to be myself and do what I love the most. In the first ten balls I wanted to hit 3-4 boundaries that time and when I got that I just kept hitting. That’s when I knew I was needed you there and then I told you to keep hitting on the other side, it will be easy for you to hide at the end.”
“Because I’ve seen you many times when you hit 30-35 balls, your next 10 balls, you hit at a 200-250 stroke rate. It was important to me that you stayed on the crease. I really enjoyed it,” he said.
Four of Suryakumar’s six sixes came over in the latter and the explosive batter said he was indeed trying to match the legendary Yuvraj Singh by sending every ball from the over along the boundary lines.
“I tried my best to hit 6 sixes in the last over, but let’s not get past Yuvi… paa‘ he joked.
Kohli and Suryakumar had made 98 runs for the third wicket, and this score yielded only 42 balls.
“The collaboration was great, it was brilliant for us as a team. I enjoyed it a lot,” Kohli told Suryakumar.
“I’m looking forward to seeing you play this kind of pat on a regular basis because I truly believe that with the way you played today and stay in that zone, you can literally change the complexion of the entire game against any team in the world,” he said. he added.
Kohli, who initially struggled to score freely, managed to reach his half-century and also accelerated on death.
He entered the tournament after a month-long hiatus amid a meager patch he would like to put behind him.
“Well, my plan was very simple, I’ve had quite a break, 6 weeks is a long time, especially at international level. I came mentally fresh, I also really enjoyed my at bat in the last game, against a quality attack,” Kohli said of his Asian Cup performance so far.
promoted
Before his 59-run knockout against Hong Kong, Kohli was India’s joint top scorer against Pakistan with his 35 innings. He is currently the leading go-getter in the tournament.
“I kind of got the pace of the wicket, I knew my job was to stabilize the innings and build a partnership with whoever I’m hitting. In between, if the situation allows, I take a risk and hit I occasionally border.” he said, speaking of his approach to Hong Kong.
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