On the eve of the first ODI against the West Indies in the southern Indian city of Thiruvananthapuram, Indian batting great Virat Kohli said out loud what had only been discussed in hushed tones – that next year’s ODI World Cup will be his last.
“It's the last World Cup I'm going to play for India, and that is my motivation – to leave everything out there,” Kohli, 37, told former India opener Abhinav Mukund in an interview for broadcaster JioHotstar.
“The goal is absolutely to win the World Cup. And whatever it takes, I'm absolutely ready.”
Discussions around Kohli come around only when India are playing an ODI nowadays or when it is time for the Indian Premier League. For the rest of the year, Kohli resides as a resident in the UK.
One of the big concerns around Kohli’s reduced workload, since he has already retired from Tests and T20s, is that he might not be in fighting shape when he wears the national colours.
On Sunday, Kohli hit the fastest bowler of the opposition – Alzarri Joseph – down the ground for a six to bring up his 50 from 40 balls and then pulled the same bowler three times in a row to bring up 15,000 runs in ODI cricket.
Kohli became only the second player, after Sachin Tendulkar, to reach that landmark. And he reached it quicker than Tendulkar. Kohli then finished the match with successive sixes, having completed his 55th ODI century.
Kohli is so ready. It seems he has a score to settle with someone.
Well, not someone but something.
The 2023 ODI World Cup final defeat to Australia is a wound that has not healed for many in Indian cricket, particularly Kohli and former captain Rohit Sharma.
Both have given up, or have been forced to forgo, the other two international formats, only for that one shot at glory – the ODI World Cup.
It is, after all, considered the ultimate prize in cricket by players and most fans; the T20 World Cup has too many variables and comes around every two years, while only four or five teams seriously contest the Test Championship.
The miss at the 2023 final in Ahmedabadis something that still plays on Kohli’s mind. He remembers that day vividly, even though he won a T20 World Cup and IPL titles after that.
“I was playing on 54 and had set myself up for a big hundred. If I got 140-150, we would be in a great position to win that game. Because you get 300-plus in a big final, and with our bowling ... we will get them. But as soon as I played on [to Pat Cummins], it was very tough to process for many days. And you keep thinking about it,” Kohli said in the interview.
Sharp as ever
The 2027 ODI World Cup is in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. By all counts, only those batters with the hunger and technique to deliver on fast pitches of southern Africa will last the distance.
On Sunday, Rohit was rushed by West Indies’ pacers under lights on a few occasions, with the opener even missing straight balls in his pads bowled at high pace by Joseph.
But Kohli looked switched on. The cuts, pulls and lofted drives came right out of the middle. A 55th ODI century became a mere formality as Kohli finished unbeaten on 139 off just 88 balls with 10 fours and nine stunning sixes as India chased down the 296-run target with eight wickets and 50 balls in hand.
Shubman Gill, ODI captain and heir apparent to Kohli’s throne, hit an effortless 110 from 108 balls. But it was Kohli’s near chanceless innings that stood out, especially because the team is without a host of first-choice players who are busy competing at the Asian Games in Japan.
In his last 10 competitive innings, which include the IPL, Kohli has seven knocks of fifty or more. By the time the next ODI World Cup rolls around, Kohli will be there. If there was any doubt about it, Sunday’s innings – his first since July – made it clear as day.
