“I wanted to make a big contribution. I have had a few fifties in World Cups, and I have never really converted them so I just wanted to finish the game off this time around. Yeah, hang on till the end which is what I have done over the years for the team,” Kohli, who was awarded the Player-Of-The-Match award said.
Earlier, Kohli couldn’t have asked for a better start to his innings when he received two free-hits from Mahmud right at the start which he clobbered for a four and a six to get his innings rolling.
“I was telling Shubman [Gill] that even if you dream about a situation like that you just go back to sleep, you won’t think it is real,” Kohli said. “It was a dream start for me, first four balls two free hits a six and four, just calms you down and just gets you into the innings. The pitch was pretty good and it allowed me to play my game…just time the ball hit the gaps, run hard and get the boundaries wherever needed.”
Kohli and R Ashwin are the only two surviving members of India’s 2011 World Cup win and he reckoned the atmosphere is great in the change room.
“There is a great atmosphere in the change room. We are loving each other’s company, the spirit is for everyone to see off the field, that’s why it is translating like that on the field. We understand it is a long tournament and you need to create some momentum in the change room for the guys to come out and play like this. It’s a special feeling playing at home, playing in front of all these people so we just want to make the most of it.”
‘I wasn’t going to run the singles anyway’ – Rahul
Rahul later admitted that not taking the singles in the last few overs was his decision suggesting that even without it India was heading towards a big win.
“He [Kohli] was confused, he said it’ll not look too nice not to take the single, it’s still a World Cup, and it’s still a big stage. I don’t want to look like I am just trying to get the milestone,” Rahul said in an interview with Star Sports. “But I said, I mean it is not won but still I think we’ll win quite easily, so if you can get to the milestone why not, you must try. And he did that in the end. I wasn’t going to run the singles anyway.”
“I can’t say I miscalculated it but I hit it a little too well in the end again, I was in a similar situation. I needed seven (nine) but the team needed five runs, so the only way I could get it was to hit a four and then hit a six. That’s what I tried to do in all honestly, I just tried to chip it over covers but I hit it too well. The moment I hit it, I knew I hit it too sweetly,” Rahul said.
