Shamik Chakrabarty in Dubai
Over the years, scoring hundreds has sort of become a batting staple for Virat Kohli in the 50-over format. He has 51 of them, the latest coming against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy. It was his 299th game. On Sunday against New Zealand, the ODI GOAT would play his 300th.
Two players in the current Indian team transcend geographic boundaries and their sporting circles. Apologies to Rohit Sharma fans, but when Kohli posts moments from India’s T20 World Cup triumph on social media, Real Madrid footballer Vinicius Junior likes them. Chris Martin of the Coldplay fame chooses a Bumrah tribute as the opening act of his concert. The fast bowler is not here in the Champions Trophy. Kohli reaching a special milestone would be one of the biggest attractions in a dead rubber.
Only six Indian players have reached this landmark before Kohli — Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Rahul Dravid, Mohammad Azharuddin, Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh. Tendulkar sits on top of the tree with 18,426 runs from 463 matches. Kohli has 14,085 from 299, with a realistic chance to surpass the master. Yes, he is 36, but remains one of fittest players in this Indian team. And his hunger hasn’t died down. Far from it.
On the eve of the Pakistan game, Kohli had turned up at the nets early — two hours before his team’s scheduled practice session at the ICC Academy. His teammates came in his wake. The intensity of that nets session was top-notch. Rohit sensed the determination of his predecessor and asked him to address the team huddle. In the match, Kohli looked to be in the right headspace from the outset. Never did he look like getting out.
Of late, he has developed a technical glitch against spinners taking the ball away from him. His feet weren’t leaving the leg stump line. He wasn’t pressing across to get to the line of the ball, with the front leg going straight down. In the process, he was ending up playing away from his body, using his hands to counter the turning ball.
Kohli has been putting in a lot of efforts at the nets here in Dubai to fix the issue. He is staying light on his feet and very conscious about the right movements while facing Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Over the years, Kohli’s preparations for matches have become legendary. New Zealand spinner Michael Bracewell gave the lowdown, as he spoke to the media on Friday. “I saw it first-hand at RCB, how he sort of prepared for each match,” Bracewell told reporters, while tipping his hat to the Indian master. “I think that’s obviously a massive, massive achievement. 300 games across a career is very impressive. And then to put that in just one format is amazing. I think it’s a testament to the way that he’s gone about his career.”
Is Kohli the greatest ODI batsman ever? Ricky Ponting thinks so. “I think I’m on record before saying I don’t think I have ever seen a better 50-over player than Virat Kohli,” the former Australia captain said on the ICC Review Podcast.
In a tournament where excitement has suddenly taken a dip, Kohli remains the ICC’s best bet to woo the fans.
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