Dubai: A dejected India captain, Virat Kohli, came down heavily on his teammates, saying that his team was not brave enough with the bat and the ball after a humiliating 8-wicket defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the Super 12 of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 in Dubai on Sunday.
Notably, India suffered their second consecutive defeat in the T20 World Cup as the New Zealand team overhauled the 111-run target in 14.3 overs to register a thumping 8 wicket win over the Men in Blue.
“Quite bizarre. I don’t think we were brave enough with bat or ball. Didn’t have much to defend but we weren’t brave when we walked out onto the field,” Virat Kohli said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
Kohli opened up on the pressure of expectations from the Indian team and fans ICC tournaments, saying he is optimistic about his team’s chances of making it to the final four. Safe to say that India’s semi-final hopes currently hang by a thread, to make it to the semi-finals India not only has to win their remaining three matches by a big margin but also hopes that Afghanistan beat New Zealand.
“When you play for the Indian cricket team you have a lot of expectations – not just from fans, but players as well. So there’s always going to be more pressure on our games and we’ve embraced it over the years. Everyone who plays for India has to embrace it. And when you cope together as a team you overcome it and we haven’t done it these two games, and that’s why we haven’t won.”
“We have to be optimistic and take calculated risks. We have to disconnect from the pressure and continue with our process and play a positive brand of cricket. Just because you’re in the Indian team and there are expectations doesn’t mean you start playing differently. I think we’re fine, there’s a lot of cricket left to play in the tournament.” Kohli concluded.
Following New Zealand’s defeat to Pakistan, New Zealand achieved their desired result with a comprehensive win. The BlackCaps are placed 3rd in the Group behind Pakistan and Afghanistan. India will next face Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
