Team India star cricketer Virat Kohli marked a significant milestone by completing 15 years in the realm of international cricket on Friday, August 18, 2023. The 34-year-old batting sensation embarked on his International journey in 2008 with his debut against Sri Lanka in the inaugural ODI held in Dambulla.
As Virat Kohli celebrated his 15th anniversary in International cricket, memories were stirred by former Pakistani fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar. Akhtar took a trip down memory lane to recall Kohli’s remarkable innings of 82* (53) against Pakistan during the T20 World Cup 2022. The legendary Pakistani seamer remarked that the match seemed tailor-made for Kohli as if the cricket deities themselves were orchestrating his success. This sentiment arose from Kohli’s challenging phase in his career, making the innings all the more special and symbolic of his resilience.
“That match was all about Virat Kohli. The cricket Gods wanted to do it for him. He wasn’t in the best of form and was facing a lot of heat from you guys in India. The media was after him. It was as of God was telling him – this is your stage, come and become king again,” Akhtar said on the show ‘Backstage with Boria’ on RevSportz.
Delving further into his innings, Akhtar emphasized that the two remarkable sixes he struck against Haris Rauf during the 19th over marked the moment when he regained his dominance on the field.
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“If you see all that transpired – rain and a lot of it, 100,000 people, 1.3 billion Indians watching, 30 crore Pakistanis watching, the whole world in awe – the stage was set for Kohli. It was the greatest stage of all. When you add the two sixes that he hit off Haris Rauf, that match gave him back his kingdom. I think it was all destined for him on that day at the MCG,” he further added.
It’s worth highlighting that Virat Kohli played a pivotal role in India’s remarkable comeback, turning a potential loss into a victory by skillfully chasing down the target of 160 on the very last ball of the match. Initially, Kohli’s innings progressed at a pace of 15 runs from 23 balls, but he swiftly shifted gears when India needed 48 runs to win from the final 18 deliveries.
