Harbhajan Singh believes the New Zealand spinners played with Virat Kohli’s ego to dismiss him in the T20 World Cup 2021 encounter between the two sides.
Virat Kohli managed just nine runs off 17 deliveries as Team India was restricted to a meager score of 110/7 in their allotted 20 overs. The Indian skipper, who batted at no.4, was kept under a tight leash by the Kiwi spinners throughout his knock.
Harbhajan Singh: New Zealand Played With Virat Kohli’s Ego
Harbhajan Singh highlighted that the Kiwis had played with the Indian batting mainstay’s psyche, while he reflected on Virat Kohli’s dismissal during a discussion on Star Sports.
“They played with Virat Kohli’s ego. They said that they will not give him the runs, if you come at the start and play the big shot, it’s fine but they will not give the singles. When you hurt a big player’s ego by not giving the singles, they play a shot like Virat Kohli played today,” Harbhajan Singh said.
The former India spinner added that Virat Kohli was forced to play a shot that was against his grain.
“Virat Kohli’s shot is not his natural game. He tried what he doesn’t do. If he had hit the same ball over cover or played after stepping out, I feel that would have been a better option,” Harbhajan Singh said.
Harbhajan Singh opined that Virat Kohli’s inability to rotate the strike led to his dismissal.
“Normally, Virat Kohli’s singles cannot be stopped. But today, Virat Kohli did not have the space to take singles. Credit to New Zealand’s field settings and the way Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi bowled, they didn’t give the easy singles, because of that they forced Virat Kohli to play that shot which he never plays,” Harbhajan Singh said.
Virat Kohli didn’t hit a single boundary during his knock. He failed to open his account in the first five deliveries he faced and didn’t score a run in 10 of the 17 balls he played overall.
Irfan Pathan: New Zealand Bowled Very Well Not Giving Virat Kohli Any Pitched Up Deliveries
Irfan Pathan showered praise on the New Zealand spinners-Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi, for not feeding Virat Kohli in his strong areas.
“They bowled very well. You talk about the line but the control that was seen even in the length, they didn’t give Virat Kohli any pitched up deliveries because they know that Virat Kohli doesn’t play the sweep against deliveries that are further away, doesn’t use his feet also too much.”
Virat Kohli fell while trying to push the accelerator pedal on the first ball after the drinks interval. He holed out to Trent Boult at long-on off the bowling of Ish Sodhi after scoring 9 of 17 balls.
India’s chances of making the semi-finals of the 2021 T20 World Cup is doubtful after their comprehensive defeat at the hands of New Zealand on Sunday by 8 wickets. Spinners Ish Sodhi (2/17) and Mitchell Santner (0/15) were responsible as their eight overs cost a mere 32 runs while also securing the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Trent Boult (3/20) and Ish Sodhi (2/17) shared five Indian wickets while conceding just 37 runs in 8 overs.
Chasing a below-par 111, Daryl Mitchell (49) and Kane Williamson (33*) helped New Zealand chase down the target in just 14.3 overs to register a commanding 8-wicket victory against India in Dubai.
New Zealand 111 for 2 (Mitchell 49, Bumrah 2-19) beat India 110 for 7 (Boult 3-20, Sodhi 2-17) by eight wickets.