Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar on Monday said Virat Kohli’s India reminded him of the Pakistan team under Imran Khan for their strong self-belief and ability to win matches from the jaws of defeat.
“India under Virat in NZ reminds me of Pakistan under Imran. Strong self belief as a team. Pakistan under Imran found different ways of winning matches, often from losing positions. That only happens when the self belief is strong,” Manjrekar tweeted.
The cricketer-turned-commentator expressed his opinion after India completed a rare 5-0 whitewash with a seven-run victory over New Zealand in the final T20 International in Mount Maunganui on Sunday.
Manjrekar also lauded KL Rahul, now also shouldering wicket-keeping duty, for his impressive showing in recent times.
“Find of the T20 series in NZ for me is the ‘batsman keeper’ K L Rahul. Absolutely brilliant!
“Samson & Pant... the next batting brigade of India obviously have the skill & the power game they just need to infuse a small dose of Virat’s batting ‘smarts’ (mind) into their game,” Manjrekar wrote.
The victory at the Bay Oval saw India stretch their record for most successive T20I wins.
This was their eighth win in a row, bettering the previous three instances when they won seven successive matches.
Kohli is the most successful Test captain in Indian cricket history, winning 11 consecutive series at home and are on top of the ICC rankings.
