Virat Kohli of India holds a cap belonging to a pitch invader while KL Rahul looks on during game four of the Twenty20 series between New Zealand and India at Sky Stadium
Until the start of this week, India had not played a single Super Over in T20Is. Five days into the week, India were forced into two tie-breakers and emerged victoriously in both - in Hamilton in the third T20I against New Zealand and on Friday in the fourth T20I in Wellington. Following the win, delighted skipper Virat Kohli gave his insight into his first-ever Super Over appearance.
Kohli revealed that India wanted to go with Sanju Samson and KL Rahul for the Super Over, but the latter convinced the skipper himself to appear given his experience. The pair chased down the required 14 with a ball to spare.
" Initially Sanju and KL were supposed to go given they can strike the ball well, but I went in because I was more experienced and in a pressure situation it was important for me to handle things," said Kohli in the post-match presentation.
Rahul smashed the first ball from Tim Southee over mid-wicket for a six and the second through backward leg for a boundary, before he departed. Kohli then stepped up to the fourth ball for a double and wrapped things up in the penultimate ball with a boundary down mid-wicket.
"The two strikes off the first two balls were important and then I thought I'd get the ball in the gaps and get the job done. I haven't been part of a super-over for too long but happy to have got my team across. I thought Sanju was fearless. This was his chance to take things away," added Kohli.
The skipper was also elated with the team's performance in both the Super Over games that helped India take a 4-0 lead in the series against New Zealand.
"There's something new that I've learnt, that you've just got to stay calm in the game, observe what's happening and if the opportunity comes then you capitalize on it. The fans couldn't have asked for a better finish in two consecutive games. We hadn't played super-over before, and now we have played two back to back. It feels good when you're out of the game and get yourself back in, it really shows the character of the team," said Kohli.
