Not for the first time in the tournament, it took Kohli's masterly knock to get India across the line in a virtual quarter-final against the reigning 50-overs world champions.
Kohli remained unbeaten after a sublime 82, burnishing his reputation as arguably the best chaser in limited-overs cricket with a knock that reminded many of Tendulkar's 143 against Australia in a 1998 one-dayer at Sharjah dubbed "desert storm".
Shane Warne was at the receiving end of Tendulkar's wrath in that match and 18 years since the contest, the Australian spin great saw Tendulkar's shadow in Kohli's latest knock.
Warne tweeted to his great rival Tendulkar after Kohli secured India a place in the semi-finals on Sunday.
Kohli bejewelled his knock with two sixes and nine boundaries and sprinted tirelessly between wickets in a flawless display of limited overs batting under tremendous pressure.
He middled every ball, timed his shots with surgical precision and found gaps with eerie regularity to stamp his class.
"Of the modern players, I've always thought that Brian Lara was the best placer of the ball," former Australia captain Ian Chappell told www.espncricinfo.com. "I think I have got Brian in second spot now."
Kohli bejewelled his knock with two sixes and nine boundaries and sprinted tirelessly between wickets in a flawless display of limited overs batting under tremendous pressure.
He middled every ball, timed his shots with surgical precision and found gaps with eerie regularity to stamp his class.
"Of the modern players, I've always thought that Brian Lara was the best placer of the ball," former Australia captain Ian Chappell told www.espncricinfo.com. "I think I have got Brian in second spot now."
