One of the greatest chapters of T20I cricket ended when Virat Kohli announced his retirement from the shortest format of the game for India just a few moments after Men in Blue were crowned as the Champions of the 2024 T20 World Cup after 17 years defeating South Africa in the final by seven runs at Kensington Oval, Barbados on 29th June.
It was a bittersweet moment for all the Indian fans as on the one hand they were exhilarated with India’s first ICC title win in 11 years, while on the other hand, two of their greatest batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma bid adieu to the T20I respectively just a few moments after guiding India towards glory.
Virat Kohli ends his T20I career as World Champion
After years of being the most dependable batter for India in the T20 World Cup, Kohli finally got a taste of glory in his last T20 international for the country. After winning Player of the Tournament consecutively in the 2014 and 2016 T20 World Cup, Kohli also finished as the Top Run scorer in the 2022 edition in Australia and the fans were again having big hopes from him ahead of the 2024 edition.
However, Kohli had a completely different campaign this year where he couldn’t even cross the double-digit in a few games. However, it didn’t affect India much as they kept winning games continuously. But when it mattered the most, Kohli stood up for India on the big stage playing a knock of 76 runs off 59 balls, which turned out to be his last T20 international for India. With the help of his knock and Axar Patel’s quickfire 47 runs off 31 balls, India posted 176/7 on board and went on to win the game by seven runs to win their second T20 World Cup.
As Virat Kohli finally had a fairytale ending to his glorious T20I career, let’s have a look at some of his greatest moments in the shortest format.
Virat Kohli’s Top Five Knocks in T20I Cricket
5. 72* against South Africa in 2014 T20 World Cup
A decade ago, Virat Kohli produced one knock of the best innings in the shortest format during the semi-final of the 2014 T20 World Cup against South Africa in Dhaka on 4th April 2014. Chasing a target of 173, Kohli came out to bat when India lost their first wicket at the score of 39 in the fourth over. After that, the young lad anchored the run-chase brilliantly along with some impactful partnerships with Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, and Yuvraj Singh. After that, Kohli finally hit a winning boundary on the first ball of the final over to take India to their second T20 World Cup final after 2007. He remained unbeaten on 72 runs off 44 balls in that game hitting five fours and two sixes.
4. 122* against Afghanistan in 2022 Asia Cup
This innings was a special one for every Virat fan not just because it was his first international T20I hundred, but it also came during a phase when he went through the worst phase of his career. Having his last international hundred in November 2019, Kohli couldn’t get a three-digit score for almost three years. Apart from the hundred, Kohli wasn’t looking in good touch throughout the first half of 2022 which was a big concern for the Indian team. But during India’s 2022 Asia Cup fixture against Afghanistan in Dubai on 8th September 2022, Kohli not only ended his three-year-long century drought but also got his old touch back which was a big sigh of relief for his and Indian fans. Kohli scored an unbeaten 122 runs off 61 balls in that game as India posted 212/2 in their 20 overs and went on to win the game by 101 runs.
3. 82* against Australia in 2016 T20 World Cup
Another Virat Kohli masterclass in the T20 World Cup came against Australia during the do-or-die encounter in Mohali on 27th March 2016. India were in a tricky situation while chasing 161 runs against the Aussies losing wickets at regular intervals. However, the Indian fans still had a little hope with Kohli at the crease. The right-hander had a steady to his innings and kept one end. After that, he suddenly shifted gears when India needed 39 runs off the last three overs smashing bowlers like James Faulkner and Nathan Coulter in death overs. At last, skipper MS Dhoni hit the winning boundary in the last over India registered a famous victory by 6 wickets with Kohli scoring an unbeaten 82 runs off 51 balls with nine fours and two sixes.
2. 82* against Pakistan in 2022 T20 World Cup
Another famous 82-run knock in a T20 World Cup by Kohli came at one of the most crunch moments for India against the arch-rivals Pakistan during the 2022 T20 World Cup clash at Melbourne Cricket Ground on 23rd October 2022. Chasing a target of 160 runs, India had a disastrous start losing 4 wickets for just 34 runs. After that Kohli and Hardik Pandya recovered the team from early breakthroughs and brought back in the game. However, the job wasn’t complete yet as India still needed 28 off eight deliveries, and then Kohli hit those two famous sixes off the last two balls of the 19th over by Haris Rauf, followed by a last over drama as India clinched another famous T20 World Cup win with Kohli again standing on one end with an unbeaten 82 runs off 53 balls, scoring six fours and four sixes.
1. 76 against South Africa in 2024 T20 World Cup final
This knock has to be on top as it came during the final of the 2024 T20 World Cup, where India defeated South Africa by seven runs in Barbados on 29th June to lift an ICC trophy after the agony of 11 years. After a rough patch during the league stage and semi-final, Kohli stood up at a big final when India lost three wickets for just 34 runs. The hopes of the World Cup were now on Kohli’s shoulders. Despite having an average tournament, Kohli played a big knock in the final and got support from Axar Patel (47 off 31) and Shivam Dube (27 off 16) as well. The star Indian batter got out after scoring 76 runs off 59 balls with six fours and two sixes. Due to his knock, India posted 176 runs for the loss of seven wickets and went on to defeat the Proteas in the nail-biting game by seven runs to lift the T20 World Cup trophy after 17 years.
Virat Kohli T20I Records
In his T20I Career of 14 years, Virat Kohli has made so many records while playing in the shortest format for India. From being the highest run-getter in the format to getting the most Player of the Match awards, the great Indian batter has ruled in T20 internationals for over a decade.
Let’s have a look at Virat Kohli’s records in T20Is:
- All-time second-highest run-getter in T20Is – 4188 runs
- All-time highest run-getter in T20 World Cups – 1292 runs
- Most Player of the Match Awards in T20Is – 7
- Fourth Highest Career batting Average in T20Is – 48.69
- Fourth Highest Run Getter of all time in T20 Cricket – 12886 Runs
- Fastest batter to score 3500 runs in T20Is – 96 innings
- Second Fastest batter to score 3000 runs in T20Is – 81 innings
- Eighth in the list of most catches taken in T20Is career – 54 catches.