India vs Pakistan: Kohli says he's not bothered by 'outside noise, distractions'

Virat Kohli, who hit his 51st ODI ton and guided India to a six-wicket victory over Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 on Sunday (February 23), said that his job is to remain focused on his game and not bother about "outside noise and distractions".

Also read: Kohli breaks Tendulkar's record, completes 14,000 ODI runs

He said he planned to attack the pacers and take less risk against the spinners in the high-pressure game at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS).

India almost assured of semis spot

India's win against arch-rivals has almost sealed a semifinal spot for the side and all but knocked the hosts Pakistan out of the tournament. This was India's second win in a row, after defeating Bangladesh in the opener.

Photos from India vs Pakistan match

Kohli got the majority of his runs from running the quick singles and doubles as he collected only seven fours in his 100 not out off 111 balls.

He completed his 51st ODI hundred with a four off the last ball of the match. Heading into the high-stakes game, Kohli had his fair share of struggles against the spinners.

What Kohli said

"It feels good to bat in that manner in an important game, where a spot for semis was there to be taken, after Rohit (Sharma) fell (20 off 15 balls). My job was clear - to control the middle overs, not take risks against spinners and take on pacers.

"I was happy with the template, it's how I play in ODIs," said Kohli at the post-match presentation after scoring his fourth hundred against Pakistan.

Kohli also got to a special milestone in the run chase as he became only the second Indian and third overall to amass 14000 ODI runs after compatriot Sachin Tendulkar (18,246 runs) and Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara (14,234 runs).

'Decent understanding of my game'

When asked about his approach in the innings, Kohli said: "I have a decent understanding of my game. For me, it's just about keeping the outside noise and the distractions away. I try to stay in my space as much as possible, really take care of how my energy levels are, what I am thinking, my thoughts, because it's very easy for me to kind of get pulled into the expectations and the frenzy around games like these. My job is to focus on my skills and to be able to do the job for the team as much as I can."

"I think one of the keynotes there is I kept telling myself on the field whenever I was feeling a bit down that I'm gonna put my hundred percent on every ball that I field and sometimes I will get the rewards for the hard work that I'm putting in on the ground. So that's why I take a lot of pride in working hard and running around the field as well," he added.

He also credited Rohit, Shubman Gill (46) and Shreyas Iyer (56) for taking on the pacers on a tricky pitch.

Kohli on 1-week break

"Clarity is important, when there is pace on the ball, you have to get scoring. Shubman and Shreyas have been excellent. Everyone's got a decent knock in these conditions, that'll augur well in the coming matches," he said.

With India set to play their last league game in Group A next Sunday (March 2), Kohli said a week's break is good for him to rest.

"At 36, a week off is very good. It takes a lot out of me to put in that much effort," he said.