The fun times continue for Virat Kohli and the Indian cricket team. After a 4-0 win in the Test series and a 2-1 win in the ODI series, India completed the set against England when they secured a 2-1 series win in the Twenty20 International series. In the final match at the Chinnaswamy stadium, India thrashed England by 75 runs thanks to a record haul by Yuzvendra Chahal, who finished up with 6/25.
And it is a wrap! Test series 4-0, ODI and T20I series 2-1 #INDvENG #TeamIndia @Paytm pic.twitter.com/IX9u2vheCk
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 1, 2017
This win also allowed Virat Kohli to remain undefeated in a series as captain. However, it was not a happy series for Kohli, managing scores of just 29,21 and 2 while opening the batting to finish with an average of 17.33.
Amidst all the celebrations, there was a moment that soured the sweetness of victory during the post-match press conference.
A journalist asked Kohli about his poor form as an opener and Kohli sounded agitated. He responded by saying, “In the 2016 Indian Premier League, I had made four hundreds while opening the batting. At that time, no one said anything. People said what a revelation I was that I achieved this while opening the batting. Now, suddenly, I did not score runs in the last three matches and there are problems.”
Expect @imVkohli to be witty. Sample this one from the post-match press conference. #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/JytGocbcxo
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 1, 2017
In the previous IPL, Virat Kohli was in Bradmanesque form as he smashed a record 973 runs in 16 games at an average of 81 and a strike-rate of over 150. He smashed four hundreds in a single edition and all those runs came while he opened the batting. He smashed his maiden T20 100 during the game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Lions in Rajkot.
India’s captain Virat Kohli celebrates with teammates after winning the third T20 against England in Bangalore on Wednesday. (REUTERS)
Kohli backed it up with a brilliant 108 against MS Dhoni’s Rising Pune Supergiants which helped them chase down 192. His next century also came against Gujarat Lions where he was involved in a record 229-run stand with AB de Villiers and he rounded it off with a brilliant 113 against Kings XI Punjab as he went past 4000 runs in the IPL.
CHAMPIONS #TeamIndia #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/S0ZTbDUsKf
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 1, 2017
‘Focus on others’
The victory in Chinnaswamy helped India secure their first-ever bilateral series win over England in T20Is. Dhoni’s aggressive 56, combined with Suresh Raina’a 63, helped India register 202/6 before Yuzvendra Chahal ended up with the best figures by an Indian bowler in T20Is to help the team to a big win.
Rishabh Pant (centre) is greeted by teammate Suresh Raina (right) after the catching out England batsman Eoin Morgan during the third T20 at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Wednesday. (AFP)
Kohli urged the media to not take away anything from this series win.
“Please focus on other 10 players in the team. If I do everything, what will others do? It is a great series win and I am more happy about that. I am not worried about the opening slot,” the Indian skipper said.
An Indian fan dressed as an Apache watches the third T20 cricket match between India and England at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Wednesday. (AFP)
Kohli further added, “If I had scored 70 runs in the last two games, would you have asked me this question? (I request you to) be happy for the team.”
With India having won the Test, ODI and T20I series against England, the focus for Kohli will be the one-off Test against Bangladesh in Hyderabad starting on February 9, followed by a four-Test series against Australia starting on February 23.
Kohli’s outburst nothing new
Virat Kohli’s outburst is not the first time that an Indian captain has reacted in a strong way to the media. Questions on form or retirement are seemingly not welcome.
Captain @msdhoni turns the tables – gets a journalist to answer his query on retirement planshttps://t.co/eb7mb08vPW
— BCCI (@BCCI) March 31, 2016
During the ICC World T20, following India’s loss in the semi-final to the West Indies, MS Dhoni was asked a question on retirement from a Cricket Australia journalist, Sam Ferris and the former India limited-overs skipper reacted in a sarcastic way.
Source: HindustanTimes