Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu has heaped praise on Virat Kohli following his match-winning performance against New Zealand in the first ODI at Eden Park, Auckland. Rayudu highlighted the difference between Kohli and other batters, pointing out that even India’s current ODI captain and world No. 1-ranked batter, Shubman Gill, struggled to score freely on a challenging surface.

New Zealand, after being asked to bat first by Gill following a rain delay, were bowled out for 185 in 40.2 overs. Arshdeep Singh led India’s bowling attack with figures of 4/70, while Gurnoor Brar picked up three wickets for 44 runs. Anshul Kamboj also impressed with 2/22 in his 10 overs.

Kohli made an impact with his fielding as well, taking an outstanding diving catch at second slip to dismiss Nathan Smith. However, his biggest contribution came during India’s rain-affected run chase.

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After Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a duck in the opening over, Kohli took charge of the innings and scored an impressive 74 off just 51 deliveries. Rain interruptions reduced India’s target to 143 in 32 overs under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method, but Kohli’s aggressive approach helped India secure a comfortable five-wicket victory.

Speaking on Cricbuzz, Ambati Rayudu explained how difficult the Eden Park surface was for batting, making Kohli’s innings even more special. “The wicket was very, very tough to bat on. The World No. 1-ranked batter found it tough and Kohli showed what he is all about. It’s amazing to bat like that in the first game of the series,” Rayudu said.

He further suggested that Gill, who was batting alongside Kohli, had little choice but to allow the senior batter to dictate the proceedings.

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“I am sure Shubman Gill, standing at the other end, even if he wanted to dominate the proceedings, I don’t think at the moment he could have; he would have watched the King bat and given it to him,” he added.

Ambati Rayudu also described Kohli’s performance as extraordinary, believing only two or three batters in world cricket could produce such an innings on that surface. Kohli’s impressive record in New Zealand further underlines his consistency, having scored 670 runs in 14 ODI innings at an average of 51.53.