Kohli called time on his T20I career after the T20 World Cup triumph last year.
Indian batting stalwart Virat Kohli shared how he changed the facets of his T20 game, and what it meant for him to win the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 title.
Kohli called time on his T20I career on the highest possible note last year, taking India to a long-awaited World Cup title with a match-winning half-century in the final.
The star batter was struggling for runs in the Men’s T20 World Cup, amassing 75 runs from seven innings before turning it around with a spectacular knock in the title clash.
His 76 off 59 balls propelled India to 176/7 in the final against South Africa. The total proved to be match-winning as the Men in Blue registered a narrow seven-run victory, with Kohli earning the Player-of-the-Match award for his effort.
“We were all emotional about it because we had been trying for so long, we saw so many ups and downs," Kohli said while speaking on the RCB Podcast.
“Personally for me, I had three back-to-back setbacks in terms of ICC tournaments – 2014 finals, 2016 semi-finals and 2017 Champions Trophy finals. And the 2015 semi-final as well.”
“I was more grateful than proud. I knew I was going to retire after that, irrespective of that [outcome], my decision was made and I was very clear that this was my last T20 tournament.”
Discussing his own effort, Kohli was pleasantly surprised to see the manner in which he scored in the all-important final match.
“And I was just grateful for the fact that I was not able to get runs through the tournament and how I was put in the pressure situation again," he said. "I was walking in with no confidence, and suddenly you get three [quick] boundaries [in the first over].
“I was like, 'What is this game?' One day you aren’t getting any runs, and then you walk into the biggest game of your career and things just start happening.”
“Then you understand, this is the amount of hard work, and then when you arrive to the ground, whatever has to take place will take place.”
The T20 World Cup triumph was a personal high for Kohli, and the batter decided to call it quits from the format following the final match.
While Kohli continues to shine for his franchise, leading the Orange Cap race in the ongoing IPL 2025, the batter explained his decision to retire from the format by saying that India’s next generation batters were ready to take the side’s gameplay to another level.
“The decision is taken purely understanding that there are new set of players who are more than ready," he remarked. "These guys are playing a way different game than what we’ve been playing.
“And they need time, they need a two-year cycle to evolve, to handle pressure and play in different parts of the world.”