'It's a different feeling': Virat Kohli opens up about his excitement to play at MCG ahead of IND-PAK clash

All eyes will be on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as Team India prepares to kick off its ICC T20 World Cup 2022 campaign against Pakistan on Sunday at the MCG. Rohit is leading the Indian side at the World Cup for the first time, while Kohli is expected to play an important part in the team's success.

Well, ahead of the highly-anticipated India vs. Pakistan battle on Sunday, Kohli said that he is much more thrilled than the match to play in front of over 1 lakh people at the historic MCG, explaining how the atmosphere is usually fantastic during World Cup matches.

Kohli revealed on Star Sports' 'Cricket Live': "More than the game, I am looking forward to that moment (playing in front of 1 lakh supporters). The last time I saw something like this was at Eden Gardens, where I believe there were roughly 90,000 people.

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It was a packed stadium. When I walked out, there were legends of the game like you know, Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis. The atmosphere was electrifying, but I needed to focus because you can get pulled into that environment.' The same was at Mohali in the World Cup. There's a different atmosphere that's built during World Cup matches.

It's a different feeling, and you can sense that build-up, you know there's this nervousness in the area, anticipation and everyone's buzzing. I love those moments. It's actually these moments that are part of the whole experience. You play to actually live these moments.”

"Our talks are usually on how do we win large tournaments and then, our planning and preparations are oriented towards that," the right-hander remarked of his and Rohit's commonalities. 

The environment on the squad has been excellent since my return. When there is a good camaraderie inside the group, you look forward to doing everything you can to help the team. As a result, our knowledge and vision of the game have always remained consistent, Kohli added.

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