'Getting everyone out inside 10 overs' : Mohammad Rizwan sheds light on fun banter with Virat Kohli in 20-20 WC

The 20-20 World Cup 2021 was the first in Pakistan’s cricket history when the team defeated India in a World Cup game. Pakistan defeated India by ten wickets after India made 151 runs for the loss of seven wickets while batting first. The duo of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam took 17.5 overs to reach this target. Rizwan made 79 runs off 55 balls, while Babar made 68 runs off 52 balls.

India lost three wickets for just 31 runs inside the powerplay. Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant tried to provide the stability to the Indian innings. During the 8th over, Pant tried to reverse sweep but the ball spun away from him and landed in Rizwan’s glove. Pakistani fielders started appealing for a caught behind but the on-field umpire was not interested. Hence, Babar asked for a DRS review where it showed that the ball didn’t have contact with the bat and Pant survived.

In a recent conversation with Paktv.tv, Rizwan revealed a funny conversation that he had with Kohli when Pakistan took this review. Rizwan mentioned that Kohli asked him whether Pakistan wanted to dismiss the Indian batters inside ten overs.

“Some things are part of tactics. No doubt Virat Kohli is the world’s No. 1. When we play cricket, it’s like family. I remember when we took the review against Pant when he played the reverse sweep, he (Kohli) said… ‘what are you doing? Getting everyone out inside 10 overs?'” Rizwan told Paktv.tv.

“But like I said, these are tactics. Later, when I walked out to bat, I spoke to him then too. Rest, whatever chats took place inside the change room, I can’t disclose but I can say that he’s a very nice person,” he added.

Rizwan became the first batter to score over 2000 runs in a calendar year in T20 cricket last year. He made 2036 runs in 45 innings at a strike rate of 131. Rizwan further revealed that he considers Sachin Tendulkar and AB de Villiers as his idol. He also mentioned that Pakistani legends like Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, and Mohammad Hafeez have also helped him in developing his game.

“I am only focussed on improving my game. Initially, I used to idolize (Sachin) Tendulkar and then AB de Villiers, but it’s not like I would like to copy them. Yes, I have learnt a lot of things watching them play. As far as learning from Pakistani legends is concerned, I have picked certain things from Misbah-ul-Haq, (Shoaib)Malik, (Mohammad) Hafeez and others,” he added.