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In a match where Rohit Sharma became the most prolific century-maker in the history of T20I cricket, former skipper Virat Kohli had a quiet outing as the batting icon failed to open his account. With India meeting Afghanistan in the third and final T20I of the series on Wednesday, all eyes were on Kohli, who returned to the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) den hoping to achieve a massive T20 record.
Playing his second T20I since the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup, Kohli was only six runs away from completing 12,000 T20 runs. If it weren’t for Afghanistan’s Fareed Ahmad, Kohli would have become the first Indian batter to seal the milestone in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup on Wednesday. However, Kohli’s bid to attack the Afghan bowler from ball one backfired as he was out first ball. Reflecting on Kohli’s dismissal after the Afghanistan series, skipper Rohit credited the veteran batter for showing intent.
‘Kohli tried to go hard from the word go’
“We only need to give the players clarity to the players about their position and the manner of cricket we want them to play with. The boys know what to expect when they come out onto the ground. As you saw today, Kohli tried to go hard from the word go, he normally does not do that, but he showed the intent. Same with Samson, he was out first ball, but the intent was there,” Rohit told Jio Cinema.
Rohit scripts history, Kohli claims unwanted record
Kohli bagged an unwanted record as the former India skipper registered his 35th duck in international cricket. Kohli eclipsed his idol Sachin Tendulkar, who has 34 ducks to his name in international cricket. Kohli has amassed 4037 runs in 117 T20Is for India and is the first and only player to amass 4k runs in T20Is.
While Kohli was out cheaply, skipper Rohit smashed a record-setting 121* to help India post 212-4 in the 20-over contest. Interestingly, Rohit batted thrice as India played out two Super Overs to edge past Afghanistan in the 3rd T20I. Speaking after the match, Rohit admitted that the 50-over World Cup is the ultimate prize for the India skipper. Rohit guided India to the final of the 2023 World Cup.
‘World Cup is the ultimate prize for me’
“See, I don’t want to think about that right now. The 50-over World Cup is the ultimate prize for me, it’s not like I don’t regard T20 World Cup and the Test Championship as important events. I grew up watching the ODI World Cup, and when it happens in India, the vibe is unmatched. We tried our best, but unfortunately we could not win. The entire team was upset, and I am sure the people were quite angry as well. But now, we have an opportunity to win the T20 World Cup, and hopefully we win it,” Rohit added.
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