"Communicated To Us By The Management": Virat Kohli On Team India Taking The Knee Ahead Of T20 World Cup Clash vs Pakistan

Captain Virat Kohli said the Indian team's gesture of taking the knee before their 2021 T20 World Cup opener against Pakistan was made after it was communicated to then by the team management. The Virat Kohli-led Indian team, on Sunday, extended its support to the 'Black Lives Matter' movement by taking the knee before their T20 World Cup match against arch-rivals Pakistan in Dubai.

"That was communicated to us by the management. The Pakistan team agreed to pay their tribute towards the same cause, and then we accepted our side of things, as well. Yeah, that's how it was decided," Kohli said in the post-match press conference on Sunday.

Before the opening duo of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul walked out to bat, the Indian players were seen taking the knee outside the team dugout. Players of the Pakistan team, captained by Babar Azam, too paid a tribute by holding their right hand to their heart. 

Sportspersons, including cricketers across the world, have been taking the knee to show support to the movement against racism since the death of African-American George Floyd at the hands of a police personnel in Minneapolis in May last year.

The Indian team was making the gesture for the first time. England and the West Indies teams, along with the match officials, took a knee last summer during their three-match Test series, the first from the sport.

On Sunday, India suffered a massive 10-wicket defeat to Pakistan, their first in World Cups to their arch-rivals.

India were outplayed from start to finish after being put into bat. Shaheen Shah Afridi starred with the ball for Pakistan, taking the wickets of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul early before returning to remove captain Kohli, who scored a gritty half-century.

In reply, Pakistan hardly broke a sweat as they coasted in the chase. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan remained unbeaten as Pakistan overhauled the target with 10 wickets in hand and 13 balls remaining.

Topics mentioned in this article

ICC T20 World Cup 2021 India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Virat Kohli Cricket