In the past ten years, there has hardly been a situation where India faces a lack of support while playing in away games. Surprisingly this Sunday it was different as a green wave dominated the Sher-e-Bangla National stadium at Mirpur, the venue of the Asia Cup final.
Sadly for the Bangladesh fans, it was India who came out triumphant in the rain-truncated match. Shikhar Dhawan returned to form with a man-of-the-match performance, a 44-ball knock of 60. The southpaw was ably assisted by the ever-consistent Virat Kohli who guided the team to victory, with skipper MS Dhoni.
Post the victory, Kohli was asked about the hostile reception of the home fans, the 27-year old stated that such a scenario eggs him more. “I enjoy the crowd being against me, it pumps me up, the more they boo me the more it motivates me”, said the prolific Indian batsman.
It is not the first time that Virat has been made a target of the wrath of the crowd. Back in 2012, he was fined 50% of his match fee for showing his middle finger toward the crowd in Sydney after he was harassed. Kohli is known for giving it back to the crowd both through his antics and his performance on the field.
Sunday was too no different as the Indian vice-captain seemed to silence the crowd after effecting Mushfiqur Rahim’s run-out with a lightning fast pick-up-and-throw. He was at it again after he caught Mortaza’s mishit to dismiss him for a golden duck.
Incidentally, Kohli finished the tournament as the second highest run-getter behind player of the series Sabbir Rehman of Bangladesh, with 154 runs in 4 innings at a mind-boggling average of 77.
Virat will look forward to helping the Indian team reclaim the World T20 in home conditions.
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