The cr cket ng gen us
who exudes a rarely seen combination of precision and passion, a man of many firsts, a ruthless captain, and an icon who has won a billion hearts worldwide. Today, Virat Kohli is a household name who needs no introduction. From a 19 year old spunky teenager who led India to glory in the Under-19 World Cup at Kuala Lumpur in early 2008 to becoming one of the greatest batsmen of his era, Kohli has given India many unforgettable moments in the cricket history.
BIRTH OF A STAR
In 2012, four years after his debut, Kohli witnesses the most defining moment of his career. In the fourth and final Test of a dismal Australia tour for India, who were already 3-0 down, Kohli came to the fore with a composed 116 in Adelaide. It was his maiden Test hundred, and the only century by an Indian batsman on that tour. Later, in the ODI triangular that followed, he scored an astonishing 133 in 86 balls to help India chase down 321 in 36.4 overs against Sri Lanka. Soon after, he made an ODI career-best 183 against Pakistan in a chase of 331.
Kohli is truly the best when it comes to chasing. He says targets allow him to think clearly and pace his innings. He has a unique ability to use this clarity of thought with a classical batting technique and a supremely confident mindset. A stable head, sure footwork and firm wrists are part of Kohli’s arsenal, which help him play an array of audacious shots.
A VERSATILE PLAYER Kohli has performed in every format. Most importantly, what he did was never repeating the same errors again. He struggled against the English bowling attack in England. He corrected his stance and went on to score heaps of runs against the Aussies.
Kohli isn’t shy to move away from tradition and learn from his mistakes, as he did on the tour of Australia in 2014-15. Having been embarrassed by James Anderson in England, he made technical adjustment in his game, and scored four centuries including twin hundreds in Adelaide. He finished the series as the second-highest rungetter behind Smith, as
Australia won 2-0.
Since then, and in no small measure helped by playing Tests at home, India have won series against South Africa, England, Australia and New Zealand while winning away in the West Indies and twice in Sri Lanka.
THE YOUNG CAPTAIN
Not many players get the chance to lead a team so early in their careers as Virat Kohli. In 2014, Kohli took over reins as Test captain for the first time. He was appointed the Captain for limited-over formats of Cricket, in January 2017.
Kohli is a passionate and aggressivecaptain,onewhoalways loves taking the game and team forward. After all his record as the captain with most wins after 50 ODIS, the most wins as captain after 23 tests for India and a plethora of other records are all immensely impressive feats.
These are good signs of a leader and such positives lead us to believe that over the course of the next few years, Viratkohli can lead the Indian cricket team to great heights with both the bat and in his role as a captain.