Virat Kohli was named the Player of the Match for his 135-run match-winning knock.
Virat Kohli smashed the Proteas bowling attack as he smashed 135 runs with 11 fours and 7 sixes. He added more than 100 runs for the second wicket with Rohit Sharma, who made 57 runs to lay a solid platform for a huge score.
KL Rahul’s 60 and Ravindra Jadeja’s valuable cameo helped India post 349/8 in 50 overs. In response, despite losing three early wickets, South Africa gave a huge scare to the Indian team with half-centuries by Matthew Breetzke, Marco Jansen, and Corbin Bosch. However, they made only 331 runs, losing the game by 17 runs.
Virat Kohli was named the Player of the Match, thanks to his 52nd ODI ton and 83rd century overall in international cricket. He also broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record for most centuries in a single format, going past his 51 Test tons record.
Kohli’s ton was widely praised by fans and pundits, with the Indian teammates joining in. Kuldeep Yadav said that it felt like he was seeing Kohli from eight to nine years back when he was at the peak of his powers. The spinner said that the star batter was looking confident during the innings.
"My career started with Virat Bhai when he was the captain. The way that he batted, I felt I had gone back 8-9 years. The way he was batting in 2017, 2018, and 2019. It was a very good innings, and he looked very confident. Whatever his shot selection was, the ball was coming nicely off the bat," said Kuldeep in a video shared by BCCI.
Kuldeep stated that Kohli is someone who provides a lot of feedback to him, particularly when he is bowling. The spinner stated that it was great to have seniors like Kohli back in the team.
"It feels good to be with him. You get to learn a lot. You always get inputs. Even in bowling, you get inputs as to what you can do. It's good to have the seniors like him around. They bring energy and intensity to the team, as you have seen on the field. So we're lucky to have it," said Kuldeep.
On the other hand, Tilak Varma was very happy to witness Virat Kohli's knock and called it a special innings. He also said he has learned a lot from the former India captain.
"We have seen one of the best knocks again. I am very happy that I have seen a hundred of Virat Bhai live. For the last 17 years, he has been electrifying on the field. The batting, the fielding, everything. He is absolutely at the top, and I have learned a lot from him, and it's a pleasure to watch him live. I will keep talking to him and learn as much as I can," said Tilak.
Here is the video: