Srinagar: Virat Kohli and KL Rahul played sensational knocks to lead India to a six wicket win against Austrlia in their opening match of the World Cup 2023 in Chennai on Sunday.
India needed five runs to win off the final 54 balls and batter KL Rahul needed nine runs to complete a well-deserved century. The equation was simple, a four followed by a six would have been enough for Rahul to reach a century.
What Rahul didn’t count on was the timing on his extra-cover drive off Australia skipper Pat Cummins which just sailed over the boundary. The Team India wicketkeeper-batter was left stranded on 97 not out as India won by six wickets with over 8 overs to spare leaving both Rahul and Cummins shell-shocked at the end of the match.
Rahul revealed what it felt to fall few runs short of a well-deserved century, saying, “I hit it too well, I just calculated how to get to a 100 in the end. The only way was a four and a six, but no qualms on not getting to that hundred.”
“Quite honestly not a lot of conversation, I thought I’d get a good shower and get a break. I was just trying to get my breath back. Virat (Kohli) said there’s a bit in the wicket, so play like Test cricket for a while. There was a bit of help for the pacers with the new ball, and then the spinners also,” Player of the Match KL Rahul said after the game in Chennai on Sunday.
“In the last 15-20 overs, dew played a part and that helped quite a bit. The ball also skidded on better. However, it was a bit two-paced, it wasn’t the easiest of wickets to bat on and it wasn’t flat as well. It was a good cricket wicket, bit for the batters and the bowlers. That’s what you get in the south of India, especially Chennai,” he added.