India had just lost a World Cup game against fierce rivals Pakistan for the first time in history, but that wouldn’t stop captain Virat Kohli finding himself at the centre of another beautiful moment amid his evolution from a villain to a gentleman.
While a huge portion of commentary following India‘s historic defeat has centred on questionable selection, benign bowling and the proud nation’s lack of recent World Cup success, it did not drown out a brilliant moment involving Kohli and Pakistan‘s heroic batters.
Moments after Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam steered Pakistan to a 10-wicket triumph in Dubai, hunting down India’s 151 in 17.5 overs, Kohli was captured congratulating the Pakistan pair in the middle, shaking their hands and patting their backs with a booming smile.
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Almost two years after winning the International Cricket Council’s Spirit of Cricket award for defending Steve Smith from a barrage of crowd abuse during the 2019 ODI World Cup, Kohli has delivered again.
The skipper’s reaction to Pakistan’s shock win is particularly commendable given the tense geopolitical relationship between India and Pakistan, which has meant the countries have not met outside World Cup or Champions League fixtures since 2008, as a result of the Mumbai terror attacks. Those attacks have also frozen out Pakistan’s participation in the Indian Premier League.
It’s against that backdrop that Kohli’s reaction to Pakistan’s win has drawn an outpouring of praise.
“Really loved the scenes at the end between Virat and Rizwan and Babar,” wrote veteran Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle on Twitter.
“Beyond the hype and posturing, this is the true story of sport.”
Another user of Twitter posted: “Seeing Virat Kohli hug Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan at the end was so amazing to see. We need to see more Pakistan-India cricket”.
BBC cricket commentator Aatif Nawaz wrote: “There’s grace and respect on both sides of the border. Don’t let anyone guide you to hate. Here’s to a positive relationship in the future between these two nations”.
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Indian cricket commentator Aakash Chopra pointed out a key lesson in Kohli’s reaction.
“Be humble in victory, be gracious in defeat, be a good human being,” Chopra wrote.
“Lesson that cut across manmade boundaries.”
British cricket commentator Isabelle Westbury wrote: “Notable how the cricketers from each of Pakistan and India and indeed the majority of cricket media are so magnanimous toward each other. Everything I’ve seen, and read, of past encounters suggests this is almost always the case. The jingoistic noise is external”.
Another user of Twitter wrote: “There is no bigger sporting match-up in the world than Pakistan versus India. When they play, the world is a better place. Time for the Indian government to pull their head out of their arse and get back to supporting scenes like this”.
And Pakistan journalist Mubasher Lucman looked beyond Kohli’s on-field moment with the opposition, pointing out his demeanour during his media conference.
“He accepted the result with a lot of grace and dignity and full marks to him,” Lucman posted.
“The man is not only a great batter but also a gentleman.”
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Humility not only shone through in Kohli’s reaction to Pakistan’s victory, but Indian media.
“It has been 29 years in the making, but when Pakistan finally broke the World Cup shackles that India had placed them firmly in, they did so in the most emphatic fashion possible,” wrote Anand Vasu of The Guardian.
“The game lasted 37.5 overs but in reality the contest was decided in 19 balls.
“(Pakistan fast bowler) Shaheen Afridi had his plans in place, skills sharpened and steamed in to let loose not so much cricket balls but precision-guided missiles that produced shock and awe.
“While that was certainly a few runs short, given the occasion, the stage and the quality of Pakistan’s bowling on the day, it was the best India could do, and at least gave their bowlers a fighting chance.
“In boxing parlance, though, India’s bowlers simply could not land a single punch when it was their turn.”
In India’s next World Cup game, they will play New Zealand in Dubai next Monday.