Chasing 444 runs against Australia in the summit clash, India lost the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara within a span of six balls. But just before Australia could run away with the match, Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane stitched an unbeaten 71-run partnership to keep India in the hunt.
Kohli, who is arguably the best chase master the modern day cricket has seen, had sent a warning to Australia just before the start of the WTC Final 2023. He has said, he wakes up everyday with the motivation to win matches for India.
“What motivates me is knowing that the opportunity I have every game that I play for India, to make my team win,” Kohli told the ICC ahead of the WTC Final.
“I don’t think in sport there is any bigger motivation than that. I wake up every morning of any game that I play believing that I’m going to be the guy who is going to make my team win.
“I’m still as excited to be the man that helps my team when I’m batting out there,” Kohli added.
The 35-year-old went on to say that he wants his team to feel comfortable knowing he is in the middle.
“I want my team to feel comfortable and they can breathe a sigh of relief that I’m out there and (knowing) I can do the job. That’s something that I’ve always taken a lot of pride in and I feel very grateful, as I said, to be in that position where the team can expect that from me.”
“I still wake up every morning believing that I can be the man for the team,” said Kohli.