Indian star batsman Yuvraj Singh has dedicated his ‘game-changing’ innings to cancer survivors on the occasion of Cancer Survivors Day.
He has also expressed his thoughts and prayers to all those impacted in the London terror attack.
“My innings on #CancerSurvivorDay is dedicated to all the heroes & survivors. Also my thoughts & Prayers to all impacted in #londonattack,” Yuvraj Singh tweeted.
Defending champions India came with an all-round performance to defeat arch-rivals Pakistan by 124 runs through Duckworth-Lewis (D/L) method in what turned out to be a one-sided Champions Trophy encounter at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground here on Sunday.
Chasing a revised target of 289 runs in 41 overs, Pakistan were bundled out for 164 runs with Wahab Riaz not coming to bat because of an injury he sustained during India’s innings.
Except opener Azhar Ali, none of the Pakistani batters could stay for long at the crease and cope with the pressure of the target as well as of the Indian bowlers.
Pakistan made a decent start to their innings with Azhar smashing six boundaries in his 50-run knock.
Pakistan was eventually bundled out for 164 for 9.
The Indian bowlers were superb as apart from Jasprit Bumrah, every bowler was among the wickets.
Umesh Yadav was the pick of the bowlers for India as he finished with the figures of three for 30 while Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya took two wickets each. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar also chipped in with a wicket.
Skipper Virat Kohli (unbeaten at 81) and Yuvraj Singh (53) continued the good work put in by the openers as they too scored aggressive fifties to guide India past the 300-plus mark.
While Yuvraj was hitting freely, Kohli slowly gained in momentum and hammered his 40th fifty off 58 balls and his first against Pakistan.
Yuvraj was declared Man of the Match for his brilliant batting performance.
The Kohli-led side will now lock horns against Sri Lanka at the Kennington Oval in London on June 8.
FELT LIKE A CLUB BATTER IN FRONT OF YUVRAJ, SAYS SKIPPER VIRAT KOHLI
Indian captain Virat Kohli said he “felt like a club batter” when teammate Yuvraj Singh was in full flow in the ICC Champions Trophy win against Pakistan here, crediting the left-hander for taking the pressure off him.
Defending champions India started their Champions Trophy campaign with a resounding 124-run victory over arch-rivals Pakistan.
Kohli and Yuvraj stood out in an all-round batting effort, propelling India to 319 for three after rain halted proceedings twice. Yuvraj smashed 53 off 32 balls, while Kohli made 81 off 68 deliveries.
“The way he (Yuvraj) was hitting the ball, I felt like a club batter in front of him,” Kohli told reporters at the post-match press conference.
“...after I got to 50, I wasn’t able to play freely. And Yuvi came in and just took all the pressure off me. And the way he batted was the way only he can strike the ball, hitting low full tosses for fours and sixes, and even digging out yorkers for fours was outstanding.
“I think that really deflated the opposition and that gave me a bit of time to settle in from the other end. When he got out, I took over. But I think his innings was a difference in the game,” he added.
While he was pleased with the win, Kohli was not impressed with India’s fielding.
“With the bat and ball, right up there--I would say nine out of 10. In the field we were still six. It’s a very strong performance, we’ve taken the confidence from the practice games.
“We need to tighten our fielding to compete hard against the best teams,” he said.
The Indian batsmen remained focused despite the rain breaks with Rohit Sharma (91 off 119), Shikhar Dhawan (68 off 65), Kohli and Yuvraj rising to the occasion in a game reduced to 48-overs-a-side affair.
“I think the way Shikhar batted was really good to see. Rohit was taking a bit of time because, understandably so, he’s come back after so long to international cricket. IPL is different, but international runs are very different, against a quality bowling attack as well,” Kohli said.
“And Hardik, 18 off five balls, was outstanding. We went with four seamers purely because we’re playing Pakistan. They play spin really well, and most of them are right-handers.
“In pressure situations, to have mid-on, mid-off up and hit hard lengths, gives us an advantage. Against other sides, we might use two spinners, depending on their strengths,” he added.
Asked what it meant to play against Pakistan given the continuing tensions between the two countries, Kohli chose to offer a diplomatic reply.
“This one’s done and dusted...We come here to play the sport. And that’s all we focus on. It’s not my place to speak of any other decisions. The higher officials take care of those decisions,” he said.
“My opinion does not matter and should not matter. It’s up to them what they decide going ahead. But regardless of who you play, you just want to play cricket,” he added.
“It’s not preferences over opposition. And that’s all I can say to this.”
Nonetheless, Kohli said he did enjoy the competitiveness of Indo-Pak cricket rivalry.
“They’re a very competitive side. The atmosphere is great. From that regard, as a cricketer, we really enjoyed this game, that’s all I can say,” he said.
Reflecting on his own performance, Kohli said he let the momentum slip after reaching 40 and regretted trying too hard for big hits during his partnership with Yuvraj.
“But when he got out, I decided to stay still and just back the strokes that I have and a few connected, and that’s what happens in this sport. Momentum comes your way; it goes away.
“But you’ve got to stay patient. And when it comes back, you’ve got to capitalise on it. So I believed in myself, I can get 30 off 10 balls as well in the end,” he explained.
Kohli credited Yuvraj for his knock as well. “Maybe I should have just let Yuvi take the initiative at that stage, not try to hit from the other end. But when you’re out there, you just want to get 15 extra for the team,” he said.
“It’s a tricky situation. But glad I was able to see it through today and end on a high, probably ended up getting 15, 20 more than we thought of, purely because of the way he batted,” Kohli added.
Man-of-the-Match Yuvraj was happy that he could capitalise on the chances offered by the Pakistanis.
“I thought we all batted really well. The openers gave us a good start, Virat finished well, and it gave me the opportunity to go and attack. You just have to go and back yourself, and tell the opposition that you’re here to attack,” he said.
“I was lucky I was dropped, but I capitalised and I was hitting it well. I finished well. India-Pakistan is always a big game, and I think it has set us up really well. Hopefully we’ll take this confidence into the next game against Sri Lanka.”
On the decision to send Hardik Panya ahead of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kohli said it was based on the former’s ability to strike it big from the first ball itself which dictated the move.
“It was unbelievable the way he came out. And we switched in the end. They asked whether we should send Hardik ahead of MS. And everyone agreed, because he just can strike the ball from ball one and has unbelievable ability,” Kohli said.
“So I think those three sixes and a boundary were probably a little bit of difference as well in the end,” he elaborated.
