"Thank You Inspiring a Generation"- Hong Kong wins everyone's hearts with a special gesture for Virat Kohli
The world witnessed the old Virat Kohli on Wednesday, when India took on Hong Kong in their second game of the group stage of the Asia Cup 2022 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The former Indian skipper came up with a brilliant half-century after a wait of some months.
He returned unbeaten on 59* off 44 balls, with one four and three sixes in his innings. It was the 31st half-century for the former Indian skipper in the shorter format and he has equalled Rohit Sharma with the most fifties in T20Is.
He, along with Suryakumar Yadav, helped India to reach a big total of 192/2 in their 20 overs, which proved to be more than enough for Hong Kong, and India registered their second consecutive win in the tournament by 40 runs. With this win, the Men in Blue have also qualified for the Super Four round and became the second team to do so.
It was a long wait for the fans of Virat Kohli to see him score an international half-century after more than 190 days. However, he started his innings slowly and looked a bit rusty, but later he picked up the pace and scored quick runs in the end.
On the other hand, Suryakumar Yadav also played an incredible innings and brought his fifty off just 22 balls and ended up with 68* off 26 balls, including six boundaries and six maximums. In reply, Hong Kong managed 152/5 in their 20 overs and lost the game by 40 runs.
However, after the match, the opposition team made a special gesture for the former Indian skipper, Virat Kohli. The whole team gifted a team jersey to Virat with a special message written on it. It reads, "Virat, Thank you for inspiring a generation. We stand with you. There are many incredible days ahead. With Strength. With Love. Team Hong Kong."
It touched Virat so much that he took on this Instagram account and shared the picture of jersey and thanked the Hong Kong team. He wrote, "Thank you Hong Kong Cricket. This gesture is truly humbling and very very sweet."
Notably, India is the first team from their group to qualify for the next round. For the second position, Pakistan will face Hong Kong on Friday and whoever wins will qualify. It is expected that Pakistan will be the second team from the group, and if it happens, then India and Pakistan will once again face each other on Sunday in the Super Four stage.