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You are never too far away from entertainment when Virat Kohli is in the house. Whether batting, bowling or fielding, he is always the cynosure of all eyes. Returning to T20Is for the first time since the T20 World Cup in Australia in 2022, Kohli made it look like he never left the scene at all. He was electric in the field, diving across to save boundaries; he nearly pulled off a stunning catch diving forward at long-on in the second T20I against Afghanistan in Indore. When it was his time to bat, he showed the world that he too could attack from ball one, even when it was not a desperate situation. His quickfire 29 off 16 balls was not a match-winning contribution by any means but it gave a glimpse of what could be expected in this format from Kohli in the future.
Kohli’s dismissal, however, did not mean that his role of being a natural entertainer was over. The former India captain was seen having a gala time in the dugout. First, while sitting beside captain Rohit Sharma, he was marvelling at the gigantic sixes hit by Shivam Dube and Yashasvi Jaiswal. And then he shifted towards the younger lot where Shubman Gill, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bihsnoi, Avesh Khan and Kuldeep Yadav were sitting.
The youngsters were in splits and most of the time, it was Kohli who was doing the talking (read cracking jokes). The best reaction from that part of the Indian dugout came when India got the winning runs in the 16th over. As soon as Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh scampered through for a leg bye, the cameras turned towards Kohli where he and Gill were seen with a face-palm while Arshdeep couldn’t control his laughter.
The unusual reaction to a winning run obviously got netizens thinking. Some indicated that there might have been a friendly banter about Dube finishing the game off with a six but after seeing the match finish with a leg bye, the dugout reacted like that.
Watch Video: Why did Kohli and Gill face palm when India got the winning runs against Afghanistan?
Half-centuries from Jaiswal and Dube helped India beat Afghanistan. India took an insurmountable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Jaiswal scored 68 off 34 balls at the Holkar Stadium, while Dube secured a second consecutive half-century in the series, as India successfully chased down Afghanistan’s 172 all out with 26 balls remaining.
Dube finished with 63 not out off 32 balls as India scored 173-4 in 15.4 overs. It had won the first T20 in Mohali by six wickets as well.
Bengaluru will host the third and final T20 on Wednesday.
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