There are very few players who make a defining impact in a short while as Virat Kohli has in the international cricket arena. He has transformed from a player with great potential who captained India to an U-19 victory to arguably the world’s best batsman today through his sheer dedication and hunger to be the best in the world at what he does. He made his debut on Aug 18,2008 against Sri Lanka. As he enters his ninth year in international cricket, let us relive The 5 defining moments of Virat Kohli’s career till date.
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1) India vs Sri Lanka, Feb 28, 2012 – Hobart
In the minds of many avid Indian cricket fans, this was the match which truly signalled the arrival of Virat Kohli. India were staring down the barrel in this must-win game and needed a bonus point victory to stay alive in this competition.
Requiring 321 to win of a meagre 37 overs, India got off to a good start through the prolific duo of Sachin-Viru. However, it was the Virat show that was on display on that day. His magnificient 133 off 86 gave India a memorable victory and also a man they could upon in the middle order.
The best part of the innings was the beating he gave to Lasith Malinga where he took him for 24 runs in an over. Malinga’s expressions at the end of the over told the entire story and this remains as one of the defining moments of Virat Kohli’s career.
2) Thunder Down Under
Virat was slowly cementing his place in the Indian Test line-up. His true test of character came up during the tours to Australia in 2011 and 2014. His gritty hundred in Adelaide in the final test of 2011 was met with high praise from the cricketing fraternity.
Where the big stalwarts of the Indian batting line up had failed to deliver, Virat fought it out and produced the goods. In the next tour of 2014, Virat led from the front. He became the first batsman in Test cricket history to score three hundreds in his first three innings as Test captain.
In these tours, he also fought fire with fire countering the verbal assaults from the raucous Aussie crowds and the fiery Mitchell Johnson sending across a clear message to the world that he was here to stay and rule.
3. IPL Season 9
One of the major defining moments of Virat Kohli’s career came in the recently concluded IPL very quickly turned into Virat’s Premier League with masterclass knocks from RCB’s charismatic captain. A man who could never muster a T20 hundred before scored 4 in this tournament, making a total mockery of the bowling line-ups.
A unbelievable tally of 973 runs in 16 matches and commendable captaincy to lead RCB to the finals made sure that this season would be remembered primarily because of Virat’s heroics. Another admirable thing was the fact that he took the team home in the play-offs with stitches on his hand. This speaks volumes of the man’s grit and desire to win.
4. India v Australia, March 27,2016 – Mohali
Some knocks are good, some extraordinary and a few of them are a stuff of legend. In a high pressure match of the T20 World Cup, Virat batted as if he was on another planet. Set a stiff target of 161 to win on a lively Mohali track, India were in a spot of bother with the required run rate shooting above 10 runs per over.
“COMETH THE HOUR, COMETH THE MAN.” Virat took the entire match by the scruff of its neck and turned it around through his exquisite stroke-play. He easily found the two boundaries in an over and ran like a hare between the wickets with the captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
While he kneeled on the pitch and thanked the heavens after the battle was won, Indian cricket fans had definitely found a superstar, one who would take Indian cricket places in the years to come.
5. Number 1 team in Tests under his captaincy
Following the rather surprising retirement of Dhoni, the responsibility of captaincy fell on Virat’s shoulders. Though some experts questioned his temperament and if he was the right man to take up the job, Virat proved that he has the necessary leadership skills alongwith his batting prowess.
With test victories over Sri Lanka, South Africa and West Indies, Virat has shown that he is an aggressive captain who goes all out for a victory. His batting form has also not affected as he recently became the first Indian captain to score a century overseas. Indian cricket is definitely in the right hands.
