At 25, Virat Kohli’s batting graph has peaked to such soaring heights which many of his contemporaries won’t attain in their entire careers. Records are meant to be broken, but it is the style in which they are shattered that makes Virat a standout performer. On Wednesday, Virat struck a blazing 136 in another tight chase against hosts Bangladesh in Asia Cup, displaying ample maturity to shoulder responsibility while filling the shoes of injured skipper MS Dhoni. Playing just 124 innings, Virat is now the fastest to hit 19 ODI tons, breaking the record of his RCB teammate Chris Gayle, who took 65 more knocks to achieve the feat. It wouldn’t be wrong to say Virat, in his six-year career, has had more impact on the team’s over-all performance than most of his illustrious seniors, including Sachin Tendulkar. His tally of 12 tons in 47 innings in successful chases is the second highest in ODIs behind Sachin’s 14, which came in 124 knocks.
Only a day before, former Australia captain Ian Chappell batted for Virat taking over the reins of Dhoni in Test cricket. While many will debate the move considering the balance and composure Dhoni brings into the side, no current cricketer comes even close to Virat if at all the idea of the stumper’s ‘deserving successor’ is entertained.
The recent series defeats in SA and New Zealand again sparked the debate of India being ‘Tigers at home, chickens abroad.’ Amidst the string of failures, Virat was the only one to show mettle to master overseas conditions. He might come across as a rash youngster who bares his emotions loudly in public, but over the years, Virat has shown enough maturity to go from ‘good’ to ‘great’. No wonder Twitterites took jibes at rumours of Bollywood diva Anushka Sharma getting a ‘lip-job’ by saying, ‘The lip must have been hit by Virat Kohli’s bat!’ The bat really hits hard, the hapless opposition bowlers will confirm.
Only a day before, former Australia captain Ian Chappell batted for Virat taking over the reins of Dhoni in Test cricket. While many will debate the move considering the balance and composure Dhoni brings into the side, no current cricketer comes even close to Virat if at all the idea of the stumper’s ‘deserving successor’ is entertained.
The recent series defeats in SA and New Zealand again sparked the debate of India being ‘Tigers at home, chickens abroad.’ Amidst the string of failures, Virat was the only one to show mettle to master overseas conditions. He might come across as a rash youngster who bares his emotions loudly in public, but over the years, Virat has shown enough maturity to go from ‘good’ to ‘great’. No wonder Twitterites took jibes at rumours of Bollywood diva Anushka Sharma getting a ‘lip-job’ by saying, ‘The lip must have been hit by Virat Kohli’s bat!’ The bat really hits hard, the hapless opposition bowlers will confirm.