T20 World Cup 2022: Fans at MCG go gaga over Virat Kohli's sensational knock against Pakistan

India and Pakistan locked horns on Sunday, October 23 in the first match of their respective ICC T20 World Cup 2022 campaigns as the former handed a defeat to Babar Azam’s side, thanks to a ‘special’ knock from Virat Kohli.

The Asian giants clashed at the biggest stage in the shortest format, and the contest lived up to its hype as it went right down to the wire. The drama, the thrill, the upsets and the excitement that an India vs Pakistan clash is known for were all present in this fixture.

India were on the cusp of losing before a right-hander, arguably one of the best run-chasers, marked his entry on the pitch and took the game away from the rival side, single-handedly. Kohli started off his innings slowly after the successive loss of wickets that India endured in less than five overs.

The 90,000 plus crowd at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), including the vast majority of Indian fans hoped for something spectacular from the former skipper and he delivered. In came Hardik Pandya who along with Kohli dictated the match nearly till the end with an outstanding 113-run stand between them.

Virat Kohli played a match-winning knock

In a video shared by the International Cricket Council (ICC) through their official Twitter handle shows a packed stadium chanting for Kohli and team India. The fans can be heard chanting ‘Chak de India’ and ‘Kohli, Kohli!’ for the sensational knock played by the batting maestro himself.

Many cricket pundits deemed Kohli's knock as one for the ages. Virat himself told after the game that it is the best T20I knock of his career.

The player was also seen emotional after the match and thanked the fans who supported him during the rough patch he endured for almost two years.