Off The Field

We leave Australian shores short of achieving our dream: Virat Kohli after India’s T20 World Cup exit

Written by Shreyas Vyas

Virat Kohli said that Team India left the Australian shores with disappointment in their hearts after it crashed out of the 2022 T20 World Cup following a 10-wicket defeat against England in the semi-finals. 

India, who were considered favourites to reach the finals, failed to break England’s opening stand as Jos Buttler and Alex Hales took their side over the line with four overs to spare at the Adelaide Oval on November 10. 

“We leave Australian shores short of achieving our dream and with disappointment in our hearts but we can take back a lot of memorable moments as a group and aim to get better from here on. Thank you to all our fans who turned up in huge numbers throughout to support us in the stadiums. Always feel proud to wear this jersey and represent our country,” Kohli said in an Instagram post. 

Kohli and Hardik Pandya’s fighting half-centuries lifted India to 168/6 after an early collapse and slow start in the powerplay overs. Opener KL Rahul once again failed, while captain Rohit Sharma could not capitalise as India reached 38/1 after 6 overs. Kohli and Pandya were forced to bat cautiously as in-form Suryakumar Yadav also departed early. 

India’s nightmarish batting took them 15 overs to reach 100 runs. However, Pandya’s late hitting in the death overs gave bowlers something to defend. In reply, England openers Buttler and Hales hammered India bowlers, racing to 63 for no loss at the end of the powerplay overs. England convincingly set up the T20 World Cup final against Pakistan at the MCG on November 13. 

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Shreyas Vyas