Outstanding, out-of-the-world, splendid, magnificent, and a host of other words- You must have often heard commentators use an endless list of adjectives to shower their praises on the current poster boy of Indian cricket, Virat Kohli.
The current master of the ODI format, Virat Kohli has played a number of wonderful knocks in 50 over games under extremely challenging conditions and he did earn a lot of laurels for that.
But besides those memorable knocks, he too has played some crucial knocks for India for which didn’t quite get the adulation it deserved. Overshadowed by the impact of his famous knocks, some of these little but crucial contributions remained firmly behind the curtains.
Here is a list of 5 underrated knocks of Virat Kohli in which remained largely unnoticed.
5) 79 against West Indies in the ICC Champions Trophy 2009
Virat Kohli, playing in his first big tournament for the men in blue, showed glimpses of his class during his knock of 79 against West Indies in their final group game.
For any young Indian batsman, playing on the tracks of the cricket grounds in South Africa poses a lot of challenges because of the pace and bounce. Though the potency of the West Indies bowling line-up can be questioned, no one can deny the fact that the conducive bowling conditions can sometimes make a pale bowling side look extremely formidable.
Chasing a paltry total of 130, India lost 2 quick wickets for only 12 runs on the board and needed someone to hold the innings together.
Keeping his composure, Kohli delivered the goods as he remained unbeaten to get India home. He was also awarded the Man of the Match award in that game but under several of his remarkable achievements, trampled was this gem which he dished out at a very young age.
4) 54 against South Africa at Durban in 2011
India kicked off their ODI series in South Africa in 2011 with a humiliating defeat of 135 runs and everyone panned the dismal show of the Indian batting line-up.
But amidst the abysmal performance of the Indian batting, Virat Kohli top-scored for the Indians with a well compiled 54 off 70 balls. However, he failed to lead India to the target of 290 that day as wickets around him tumbled one after the other.
But Kohli surely showed a lot of character that day as he countered the threats of the formidable South African bowling attack on a track which aided them to the core.
But due to India’s loss and the failures of the other batsmen, his knock remains a tad underrated.
3) 54 against Sri Lanka in Colombo in 2008
In one of India’s memorable ODI series triumphs outside the country, especially because of all the hoopla surrounding the mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis who literally toyed with the famed Indian batting line-up before this particular series, Virat Kohli had an important contribution.
Playing in his debut ODI series and only his 4th international game, Kohli came to open the bat when the ball was new and swinging and the likes of Chaminda Vaas and Nuwan Kulasekara could have wreaked havoc.
However, soothing the nerves of the dressing room, he played an important knock of 54 which set the platform for India to put on a challenging total on the board.
Kohli stayed till the 18th over and showed a lot of character to nullify the threat of the opening bowlers and lay the foundation for his team.
India went on to score 258 in that game and that proved to be a little too much for the Sri Lankans as they succumbed to a 46-run defeat and thus squandered the series as well.
2) 43 against England in ICC Champions Trophy 2013 Final
In the rain-curtailed ICC Champions Trophy 2013 Final, India batting first, lost wickets in quick succession and soon found themselves reeling at 66 for 4.
The match was reduced to 20 overs a side and India needed a decent total on the board to put up a fight. Kohli rose to the occasion as he scored a crucial 43 to steady the Indian ship and reach a total of 129 which turned out to be a winning one as India defeated England by 5 runs to lift the Champions trophy.
Later the bowlers’ efforts were highly praised for defending the total, but everyone seemed to forget the contribution the man made. It surely deserves a mention in this list.
1) 35 against Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup Final
A 22-year-old Indian batsman, playing in his first World Cup final, that too in front of the home crowd, came to bat at a time when India were 2 down for 31 and had just lost Sachin Tendulkar who was batting brilliantly till then.
With the daunting target of 275 set by Sri Lanka ahead and umpteen chants from thousands of spectators- the young man was surely under a lot of pressure that day. But the Delhi lad surely calmed the nerves of the millions of Indian fans that day with his crucial 83-run partnership with Gautam Gambhir to steady the ship for India.
His contribution of 35 might not look that big, but given the situation India were in, things could have become extremely difficult for India had they lost another wicket.
But he didn’t let that happen. The young batsman made sure that India remained on course to lift the trophy in front of their jubilant home crowd at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
However, amidst all the euphoria surrounding the skipper Dhoni’s 91 and Gambhir’s 97, no one quite acknowledged the impact Kohli’s knock had. Had it not been for the spectacular catch that Dilshan took off his own bowling, his innings would surely have lasted longer than it did.
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