Virat Kohli equals Kane Williamson’s record after 2nd successive fifty in T20Is vs England
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It was batting of the highest class! India captain Virat Kohli showed why he is among the best, if not the best going around with a masterful fifty in the 3rd T20I on a difficult batting surface at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. Leading a single-handed charge, Kohli got to his second successive fifty of the series as he took the England pacers to the cleaners in the death overs.
With the fifty, Kohli equalled New Zealand star Kane Williamson’s record for the most number of fifties by a captain in T20I cricket. Both Kohli and his good friend Williamson have hit 11 fifties as skipper in the shortest format of the game. It was also Kohli’s 27th T20I fifty, 11th as the India captain as he led India’s revival after a top-order failure in the 3rd T20I.
It was also the first time since the T20 World Cup in 2016 Kohli has hit 2 successive fifties in a series/tournament. Kohli was struggling for form in the lead-up to the T20I series. He was dismissed for 0 in the first T20I.
However, he roared back to form in India’s 7-wicket win over England in the 2nd T20I on Sunday. On Tuesday, Kohli showcased he is back to his absolute best with an array of trademark shots when the other India batsmen struggled to put bat to ball. Despite Kohli’s 77 not out of 46 balls, India managed just 156 in 20 overs.
Vintage Kohli shows he is back at his best
Virat Kohli was at his vintage best, bringing back memories of that T20 World Cup in Mohali against Australia as he single-handedly took the likes of Mark Wood and Jofra Archer to the cleaners. Kohli finished with 77 not out in a well-paced knock. He hit 49 runs in his last 17 balls, playing some awe-inpiring shots at the Motera, unfortunately in front of empty stands.
England pacer Mark Wood had figures of 14 for 3 when he came up to bowl his final over. However, Kohli showed no respect for the reputation of Wood, hitting two glorious sixes and collecting 17 runs from it.
India were reeling at 87 for 5 at the end of the 15th over but they ended up with 156, adding 69 runs in the last 5 overs, thanks to Kohli’s masterclass in Motera.