‘Never seen a better innings than that’ - Shaheen Afridi hails Virat Kohli’s majestic 82* against Pakistan at MCG as greatest-ever knock

It is quite rare for a player to receive appreciation from the opposition team/players. Virat Kohli is one such player who has been a nightmare for his opponents for years but has managed to win their hearts. Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi is the latest cricketer to confess his admiration for the former Indian captain.

The left-arm pace spearhead admitted that Kohli’s unbeaten 82 against Pakistan in the 2022 T20 World Cup was the greatest-ever knock he witnessed in his career. From a winning percentage of 15 to sealing the game by four wickets, Kohli went on an incredible spree at the MCG on 23 October.

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Afridi also recalled the ace cricketer’s “unbelievable” six over the head of fast bowler Haris Rauf in the 19^th over. That six was indeed a game-changer and was later declared by ICC as the ‘Shot Of The Century’.  

“Virat Kohli’s 82 – I have never seen a better innings than that in my career. He is a Great player – That ball was Haris Rauf’s best ball, and he hit six straight down the ground was unbelievable," Afridi was quoted as saying by Cricket Times.

Also Read: WATCH: Haris Rauf left speechless when reminded of Virat Kohli’s sixes in Melbourne

A look back at India's famous win over arch-rivals at MCG 

Chasing a competitive score of 160 in a high-intensity encounter, India got off to a horror start as they lost four wickets for 31 runs in 6.1 overs. Just when Pakistan started to smell an easy victory, Kohli and Hardik Pandya built a partnership and brought India back into the game.

Kohli went past his half-century but still, a good amount of job was left to take his team over the line. Needing 28 runs off the last eight balls, the right-hander hit back-to-back sixes against their premier pacer Rauf to complete the 19th over. The final over witnessed dramatic scenes as Hardik and Dinesh Karthik got out. The equation came down to 1 run off 1 ball and Ravichandran Ashwin hit the winning run to script history on Australian soil.