The 23-year-olds established credentials now include 11 One-Day International hundreds and one Test ton - the latter being the sole century by an Indian in the just-concluded series whitewash Down Under. He also captained the country to the International Cricket Councils under-19 World Cup in 2008. Indias highest run chase ever. AdTech AdSundays match was special because it was an India-Pakistan game - the first since the World Cup semi-final in 2011 - and the pressure was immense. Add to this the fact that a defeat would have virtually sent M. S. Dhonis men packing from the tournament and that Pakistan had racked up 329 for six on a flat batting track, and it threw up a situation that would unnerve the best in the business. Fellow Delhiite Gautam Gambhir was found wanting when he succumbed to the second ball of the innings with no runs on the board, leaving Kohli to join Sachin Tendulkar and build Indias reply at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, which resembled a cauldron with a full house of screaming fans. What Indias vice-captain built, instead, was a spellbinding masterpiece that overshadowed his own effort against Sri Lanka in Hobart last month. There, in a similar do-or-die match, he had helped India chase 321 in a little over 36 overs. But this time around, Kohlis knock featured less savagery and more deft touches. He used the bat like a scalpel to inflict a fatal wound on Pakistans strong bowling attack, helping India to their highest successful ODI run chase and notching up a career-best 183 off just 148 balls, studded with 22 boundaries and one that cleared the ropes. Kohli put in the shade crucial half-centuries by Rohit Sharma (68) and Tendulkar (52) and also Pakistan opener Nasir Jamsheds maiden century (112) as well as his partner Mohammad Hafeezs fourth ton (105). The chase eclipsed the 326 India made against England in the unforgettable NatWest Series final in 2002, which had provoked the shirt-waving reaction from Sourav Ganguly on the balcony of Lords. In Dhaka, Pakistans faster bowlers - Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz and Aizaz Cheema - were taken to the cleaners by Kohli with flicks, drives and pushes. However, despite the defeat, Pakistan qualified for the final with nine points. India (8 points) can make it to Thursdays title round only if Sri Lanka (no points) beat Bangladesh (4 points) in the last league match on Tuesday. Coming back to man-of-themoment Kohli, his ODI record so far is simply outstanding, and provides much-needed relief to those palpitating about the future of Indian batting in one-dayers and Tests once the legends bid farewell. And then comes the irreverent attitude, which may offend the purist, but is an integral part of the Kohli phenomenon. When the chips are down, he can flip the middle- finger to heckling fans. On the field, the celebration of a catch or a century is mostly replete with the choicest abuses. Kohli is fast becoming the epitome of Young India, which never gets bogged down in the face of adversity and puts performance and victory over gentlemanly behaviour. He is, quite simply, a rockstar who gets the crowd grooving in the aisles when he is on song. The comparison between Kohli and Tendulkar at the same stage of their ODI careers is stark. Bearing in mind that for much of his early career, Tendulkar batted down the order and only transformed into a legend after his careerchanging decision to open the batting in New Zealand in 1994, Kohli is still miles ahead of the genius from Mumbai. In 85 matches, the Delhi lad has scored 3,590 runs at an average of 50.56, with 11 hundreds and 21 half centuries, with Sundays knock being his best effort by far. Tendulkar, in his first 85 games, had made 2,393 runs at a pedestrian average of 33.23 with two centuries and 17 fifties. However, it was at this stage that Tendulkar, the boy wonder, was transforming into a force of nature, something that Kohli would do well to emulate. There was a time, by Kohlis own admission, when success had gone to his head, and he had started concentrating on things other than cricket. But the way he has shaken himself out of that complacency and transformed into a run machine is a story that needs to be circulated among young cricketers. When Kohli got his first India call-up, youngsters such as Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma were ahead of him in the pecking order. But by sheer dint of his remarkable fitness, powers of concentration, sensible shot selection and mountains of runs, he has not just overtaken them, but also some of his more senior and illustrious colleagues as the first name on the team sheet in ODIs. Kohli is ready to be the mainstay of the Indian batting order for the next decade and more and, on current form, he looks unstoppable.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 12:07:27 +0000
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