The group stage encounter between India and Pakistan at Adelaide Ovalജ, during the 2015 ODI World Cup was a marquee clash of the tournament, with millions around the world watching.
India batted first, and it was Virat Kohli who stole the show on the big occasion. First, he stitched a massive partnership of 129 runs with opener Shikhar Dhawan, who scored a flamboyant 73.
The Men in Blue looked to step on the gas during the last 20 overs when captain MS Dhoni asked Suresh Raina to pad-up and take the assa♈ult one not💯ch higher.
Raina, in return, paid rich dividends to the faith entrusted on him with his blist🌞erinꦺg knock of 74 off just 56 deliveries, smashing five boundaries and three sixes, at a strike-rate of 132.
Virat, at the other end, was unstoppable as he scored a fluent 107 off 126 deliveries, which consisted of eight g⛄littering boundaries.
If the partnership between Dhawan and Virat laid a solid foundation for the Indians, Virat and Raina almost batted the Pakistani team of the game 𒐪with their entertaining partnership of 110.
“I never questioned his decisions. I remember I was having a sandwich or something during our match against Pakistan in World Cup 2015. Suddenly after 20 overs, he said ‘pad-up’. I padded up. Virat was batting really well, and this happened just a few overs before Shikhar (Dhawan) got run out. So I got out in the middle, played a few shots and scored 70-80 runs,” said Raina in a YouTube interview.
Dhoni asked Raina to bat ahead of Ajinkya Rahane, who was the desi✤gnated number fo♕ur in the Indian batting order.
However, when questioned by Raina regarding his surprising promotion, hꦇe revealed that Dhon꧅i believed of him to fare better against leg-spinner Yasir Shah, who went for plenty being wicketless in the game.
“After the match, I asked him why did you send me up the order? He said, ‘I thought you would play better against the leg-spinner who was bowling at that time’. He also praised me for my batting. So I also want to know what goes on in his mind,” added the out-of-favour batsman.
“He was always a step ahead. He used to stand behind the stumps for the entire match, assess the pitch, whether it has turn and swing. He was seldom wrong. I can say he was god gifted,” concluded Raina.
India could not post a mammoth total and only huff and puffed to 30🍨0. Moreover, it proved to be sufficient as Pakistan lost the game by a margin of 76 runs.
