Virat Kohli, known as the master of run-chases in international cricket, has a world record of scoring 22 of his 46 ODI hundreds in successful run chases for India. Kohli ‘s favourite opposition is Pakistan, against whom he averages 48.72 in ODIs and a massive 81.33 in T20Is. However, the star batter has also faced failures on some occasions, notably in the Champions Trophy final of 2017. He was dismissed for just 5 off 9 balls.
Azhar Ali dropped Kohli at first slip
During that match, Kohli got a life after being dropped by Azhar Ali at first slip. Recently, the former Pakistan cricketer revealed that he felt burdened with pressure after dropping India’s premier batter on the big stage. He further added that he began to dread the harsh criticism he thought he would receive from the entire country if Kohli were to score big and take India home.
However, Ali was lucky as the next ball dismissed the Kohli, as he got a leading edge against Mohammed Amir, and the ball went straight to Shadab Khan at point.
“I saw it in reality. Between that drop catch and his dismissal, plenty of things flashed before my eyes. It felt as if I have been burdened with weight and pressure, and that the entire world is watching me asking as if ‘Look what he’s done’. That was my feeling and I thought ‘God forbid, if he(Kohli) does what he is famous for… if he chases this down. he scores a lot in chases – my house will get vandalised.’ Fortunately, I was just thinking about all these scenarios and he got out the next ball.” Azhar said on ‘Hasna Mana Hai’.
Turning point of the final was wicket on no ball
Fakhar Zaman was the hero of the match as he smashed a brilliant 114 off 106 ball. However, the opening batsman was given a lifeline early in his innings when India’s Jasprit Bumrah bowled a no-ball. In a surprising revelation, Azhar Ali disclosed that Zaman had actually dreamt of this very incident.
“When he came back after being given not out, he was laughing. He later shared that he had a dream that he got (out) off a no-ball. So, when a repeat of it happened in the final, I fist-pumped him,” Azhar said.
The Sarfaraz Khan-led side inflicted a crushing defeat on the defending champions, bundling them out for a mere 158. Mohammad Amir dismissed the top order of India, including Kohli and finishing with impressive figures of 3/16 in 6 overs.
Despite Amir’s heroics, Hardik Pandya provided some resistance for India, scoring a valiant 76 off just 43 balls. However, his innings came to an unfortunate end due to a miscommunication with Ravindra Jadeja.
