With India’s star batter Virat Kohli lead the team beat Pakistan by 6 wickets in the Group A match of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 at Dubai on Sunday, he shared the mindset for his impeccable performance when being awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ award.
Speaking at the post-presentation, Kohli stated that he kept telling himself that he will give his 100 percent.
He said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo, “It feels to be good to bat in that manner in an important game, where a spot for semis was there to be taken, after Rohit fell. My job was clear – to control the middle overs, not take risks against spinners and take on pacers. I was happy with the template, it’s how I play in ODIs. I have a decent understanding of my game. It’s about keeping the outside noise away, take care of my energy levels and thoughts. It’s easy for me to get pulled into expectations and frenzy around games like these.”
“I kept telling myself I’ll give my 100% while fielding. It’s why I take pride in it. When you put your head down and go about your work, things work out. Clarity is important, when there is pace on the ball you have to get scoring. Shubman and Shreyas have been excellent. Everyone’s got a decent knock in these conditions, that’ll augur well in the coming matches. At 36, a week off is very good. It takes a lot out of me to put in that much effort,” he concluded.
Virat Kohli remained unbeaten and scored his 51st century in 111 deliveries, which included seven boundaries.
