Virat Kohli made a stunning comeback to form on Saturday, June 29, with a brilliant fifty that guided India to a competitive total against South Africa in the final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Before the final, Kohli’s performance in the tournament had been underwhelming, with just 75 runs in seven games. However, he regained his form at the most crucial juncture, playing an exceptional knock to rescue India from a precarious position in the title decider.
India’s innings started disastrously after captain Rohit Sharma opted to bat first. The team lost three wickets inside the powerplay, including their in-form skipper. In the second over, Keshav Maharaj struck twice, dismissing Rohit Sharma for 9 and Rishabh Pant for a duck, putting South Africa firmly on top. The situation worsened in the fifth over when Kagiso Rabada removed Suryakumar Yadav for just 3, reducing India to a precarious 34 for 3.
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With India in deep trouble, all eyes were on Virat Kohli to deliver. The batting maestro did not disappoint, anchoring the innings with a brilliant 76 off 59 balls, featuring six fours and two sixes. His composed and resilient performance was pivotal in stabilizing India’s innings.
Kohli, alongside Axar Patel, forged a crucial 72-run partnership for the fourth wicket, steering the team away from further collapse. The partnership ended in the 14th over when Axar was run out for 14. Kohli continued his fine form, completing his fifty and propelling India towards a respectable total before being dismissed by Marco Jansen in the 19th over.
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The cricketing world was quick to praise Kohli for his timely knock in the final. However, some fans critiqued him for not being aggressive enough during his innings.
Here are some reactions to Virat Kohli’s performance:
Cometh the hour….Cometh The Kohli.
Well played 👏👏#IndvSA #WorldCupFinal
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) June 29, 2024
Show me any player more selfish than Virat Kohli, and I’ll delete my account😎.
He played slowly until he reached 50 for his own selfish reasons🥲, putting everyone else under pressure.76(59) in a highway pitch 🤢..Shame#INDvsSA2024 #INDvSA #T20WorldCup #IndiavsSouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/C0aG8Mu3l5
— Mr_br29 (@BudhiprakashBi4) June 29, 2024
Even after 16 Years of cricket , the entire nation still relies on Virat Kohli in a WC Final is quite an achievement 🤯 pic.twitter.com/GgE7shQV4J
— Dinda Academy (@academy_dinda) June 29, 2024
Selfish is the last word people should associate with Virat Kohli! You don’t even understand cricket if you think that guy would care about milestones in a World Cup final. He has his limitations in this format but one can never question his intentions. #INDvSA #T20WorldCup
— Mohsin Kamal (@64MohsinKamal) June 29, 2024
Virat Chokli – 76 (59)
Rest of the team – 100(61)Selfish Statpadder holding India back 💔pic.twitter.com/suaRd4GPCe
— 🄺Ⓐ🅃🄷🄸🅁 1⃣5⃣ (@katthikathir) June 29, 2024
Most selfish player.
48 ball me kaun 50 maarta hai? Wo bhi worldcup final me. pic.twitter.com/vgPvVfUb38
— यमराज (@autopsy_surgeon) June 29, 2024
Shame on people calling Kohli selfish for this innings.
Right after fifty he started playing for the team. What did others do? Where is any fifty in scorecard?
— Himanshu Pareek (@Sports_Himanshu) June 29, 2024
failed in every single match from group stage , all thought his legacy would end up as a disaster & here’s my man writing his own script as he always does 😭🔥
REMEMBER YOU CAN NEVER SHUT THE SUN DOWN , SO AS KOHLI 👑 pic.twitter.com/3RmH5eb4uB
— KఅLKI🕊️ (@CopBloodiest) June 29, 2024
Gautam Gambhir 2007
Gautam Gambhir 2011
Virat Kohli 2024Dilli waalo se hi hoga. Maaro bc 👊🏻#INDvSA #T20WorldCup
— Sahil Malhotra (@Sahil_Malhotra1) June 29, 2024
Whole India to Virat Kohli. #INDvsSAFinal pic.twitter.com/wqR0AK48MN
— Mikku 🐼 (@effucktivehumor) June 29, 2024
Despite the early setbacks, India managed to recover from 34 for 3 to post a total of 176 for 7 in their allotted 20 overs. For South Africa, Keshav Maharaj and Anrich Nortje each took two wickets. At the time of writing, South Africa were struggling at 109 for 4 in 13 overs.
