Kohli scored 93 off 91 balls to help India achieve the target of 301 with an over to spare.
New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson heaped praise on Virat Kohli’s match-winning knock in Vadodara ODI on Sunday (January 11), saying the Indian stalwart operates on a "different level" where even the best bowling plans often prove ineffective.
Chasing 301 to win, Kohli slammed 93 off 91 balls with 8 fours and 1 six to help the hosts overhaul the target with four wickets in hand an over to spare.
Kohli appeared on course for a record-extending 54th ODI century at the BCA Stadium before Jamieson dismissed him, inducing a mistimed shot that resulted in a catch at mid-off.
"It's hard to say from an opposition point of view whether this is the best version of him or not - he's been pretty good for a long time, right?" Jamieson told reporters after the match.
"You feel every time you come up against him, you've got to be at your absolute best to even compete. He's on a different level, he plays the game on a different level to most cricketers, (and) he looked pretty good for the most part.
"We'll just have to try and come up with some plans to try and contain him, but (then) you don't contain the greats, they have their way a little bit, so just enjoyed watching him play for sure," he added.
Jamieson was the standout bowler for the Kiwis, returning with figures of 4/41 in 10 overs. While the tall seamer briefly triggered a collapse by removing Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja (4) and Shreyas Iyer in quick succession, it wasn’t enough to ensure win for the visitors.
"He (Kohli) controlled the tempo through the middle and set the innings up for his team," Jamieson admitted.
Reflecting on his own career, Jamieson spoke candidly about the highs of bagging a lucrative IPL deal and the challenges of spending time on the sidelines due to recurring back issues.
"Like any player's journey has got its ups and downs and its own experiences, I was fortunate to (have) burst onto the scene in a way and have a bit of an impact and spend some time here with the IPL early on," he said.
"(It) certainly (was an) eye-opening experience and something I probably wasn't quite ready for at that stage in my life, and (I've) been on a bit of a journey as well with the back issues over the last couple of years.
"My perspective has changed a fair bit, I look at touring and playing cricket and just being on the park with a fair amount of gratitude these days than probably what I did (before)," he added.
Jamieson also named the pace bowlers who shaped his own approach to the game while growing up.
"You're always looking at the greats, right, whoever's at the top of the game at that point in time. When I was growing up, we had Shane Bond from a New Zealand point of view, obviously a lot of those Aussie quicks were doing a hell of a job, Brett Lee...Glenn McGrath.
"As you get older you watch bits of Dale Steyn...you're always trying to watch the guys who are at the top of the game and if we look at it from the present standpoint, you're looking at guys like (Pat) Cummins, (Josh) Hazlewood, Jasprit (Bumrah), (Kagiso) Rabada."
On spearheading a relatively inexperienced New Zealand bowling attack, Jamieson said: "Everyone's trying to help each other and I've been fortunate to come to this country a few times and to experience everything that comes with playing cricket in this country."
"It was so cool just to see them experience this for the first time, the crowd and the noise and every boundary and when Virat and Rohit (Sharma) walked out," he remarked.