Virat Kohli 'most pleased' at Ashwin's comeback after leaving out offie against Pak & NZ

After facing criticism over leaving out Ravichandran Ashwin in India's first two T20 World Cup matches, skipper Virat Kohli hailed his comeback against Afghanistan on Wednesday. The veteran off-spinner bamboozled the Afghan batters getting the scalps of Gulbadin Naib and Najibullah Zadran while giving away just 14 runs in his 4-over spell. Emerging as India's most effective bowler in terms of wickets as well as runs, he helped India romp to a comfortable 66-run victory. Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Kohli acknowledged the pivotal role of Ashwin who replaced Varun Chakravarthy as the latter had a niggle. 

Commenting on the positives of the game, Kohli remarked, "I think the return of Ash. That's something he has really worked hard for. And we saw this kind of control and ability in the IPL where he bowled to the big boys as well. So, I am really happy to see him back in rhythm. When he can bowl like that, then you can control the middle-overs and he is a wicket-taker. He is a smart bowler as well. So, I am most pleased about him."

Despite playing a huge part in India's win in the warm-up ties against Australia and England, the all-rounder was excluded from the crucial matches against Pakistan and New Zealand which the team ended up losing. Though England scored 188, it could score only 23 runs from Ashwin's quota of overs. On the other hand, he dealt a huge blow to Australia by dismissing Warner and Mitchell Marsh cheaply while leaking only 8 runs in his two-over spell. Interestingly, the Afghanistan match marked Ravichandran Ashwin's first T20 International game after 4 years. Prior to this, he played a T20I against West Indies on July 9, 2017. 

India vs Afghanistan highlights

The must-win game for India didn't start on an optimistic note as Virat Kohli again lost the toss and Afghanistan elected to field first. However, this decision turned out to be a blessing in disguise as Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul got off to a rollicking start with the team scoring 53 runs in the Powerplay. Even after they put up their 5th century partnership, there was no respite for Mohammad Nabi and his men as both batters amassed 135 runs in 14 overs. Soon after, Rohit holed out to cover for an entertaining 73 which comprised three sixes and 8 fours.

There was a brief lull in proceedings as Rahul was dismissed for a 48-ball 69 and wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant managed to survive a few close LBW calls. It was the Pandya and Pant show thereafter by scoring 63 runs from the last 21 balls thereby propelling India's total to 210- the first time any team has crossed 200 in this World Cup so far. On the other hand, Afghanistan got a poor start with Mohammad Shami and Jasprit Bumrah dismissing Mohammad Shahzad and Hazratullah Zazai on consecutive deliveries with just 13 runs on the board. 

Although Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Naib counter-attacked helping Afghanistan to a respectable score of 47 in the first 6 overs, they lost the plot once Kohli introduced Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin into the attack. In the end, the late resistance of Karim Janat (42) went in vain as India sailed towards a win. Even as India remained alive in the T20 World Cup, it has to improve its Net Run Rate against Namibia and Scotland and hope for Afghanistan's victory against New Zealand to reach the semifinals.