Dubai: Former Pakistan Women's team captain Sana Mir lavished praises on the Indian skipper Virat Kohli and billed him as a "role model" for being an epitome of grace even in defeat which she feels reflects that he is a secure individual.
India suffered a humiliating 10 wicket loss against Pakistan for the first time in an ICC World Cup tournament, in their opening match of Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup on Sunday.
However, one of the most beautiful sight from the game was of the Indian captain hugging Pakistan team's match winning hero Mohammed Rizwan.
"Virat Kohli handled the defeat with so much grace and I admire his sportsman spirit. It's really good to see the top athletes, who are role models, behaving in the way he did," Mir, a former Pakistan captain, wrote in her column for the ICC's official website.
"It shows a lot of security within, and it means they have a lot of confidence to bounce back," she further wrote.
Mir said she won't be surprised if the men in blue come back in the tournament with some big wins.
"I won't be surprised if India bounce back very quickly and in a big fashion and I hope we can see Pakistan and India play each other again in this tournament." On Pakistan, the legendary woman cricketer said she liked skipper Babar Azam's attitude of looking immediately towards the next assignment instead of enjoying a prolonged celebration.
"With this performance, Pakistan have definitely become one of the favourites for the tournament, but it was heartening to see Babar and Shaheen not get carried away when in front of the media, they were focused on the next games," she said.
"It is a great sign that they are staying level-headed and shows the team is going in the right direction," she further wrote.
With PTI Inputs
