Virat Kohli talked about the 2019 ICC World Cup semi-final that was played between India and New Zealand at Manchester and admitted that the loss was a jolt for him and the entire team. He also stated that had it not rained and the match not resumed on the reserve day, India would’ve won the game.
New Zealand had opted to bat first in Manchester and, despite fifties by Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson, were restricted to 239/8 thanks to brilliant bowling by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. However, India couldn’t begin their chase the same day due to rain, and when the match resumed on the reserve day, the conditions were overcast and suited New Zealand pacers more.
India was reduced to 92/6 in the chase, and despite a valiant effort by Ravindra Jadeja (77) and MS Dhoni (50), India could only muster 221 runs and lost the knockout game by 18 runs.
“Playing Australia in the 2015 semifinal, you are very well aware of your strengths and weaknesses, and Australia is always difficult. We always knew that if it gets to a massive score, it will be tough, and that is what happened. They were phenomenal. But 2019 was a jolt for us. 240... it rained out. Had we played that day, things would have been different.
But the next morning, a fresh new ball attack. They got the best of the conditions, and they put us under attack, and they banked on the hesitation that we had. That was too tough to swallow and process. I was distraught. After that, I was totally gone mentally for a couple of months,” Kohli told JioStar.
India had another heartbreak in the World Cups when they had qualified for the final in the 2023 ICC World Cup at home but lost convincingly to Australia in Ahmedabad.
Kohli described India's 2023 World Cup campaign as a "massive step forward" in terms of both quality and performance. But the encouraging atmosphere in the dressing room was what really stuck out to him during the run to the final.
“That whole World Cup was great; the environment was phenomenal. Within the team, you could see the camaraderie; everyone was happy playing for each other. Even losing someone like Hardik early on, we never spoke about what would happen next, although it was a big loss in terms of what he brings. But Shami came, and you know what he can do. So, everyone had a feeling that it was our World Cup,” he added.
“Before we won the IPL in 2025, I used to get flashbacks of the 2016 final. I feel the same about the World Cup final as well. I was playing on 54 and had set myself up for a big hundred; like, if I got 140-150, we would be in a great position to win that game. But as soon as I played on, it was very tough to process for many days. And you keep thinking about it,” Kohli added.
Kohli also opened up about his unfinished business with the World Cup.
“The thought will never cross my mind that the business I had is finished. As long as you’re playing, there is always something to look forward to. And I’m looking forward to the World Cup, looking at what lies ahead for me. When the World Cup is played, when we play an ICC tournament, it has its own unique challenge, because you face different opponents, and you play at different venues. So, you have to prepare differently and think in a different way, and that is the challenge,” he said.
Kohli's thoughts on the heartbreaks of 2019 and 2023 are even more important now that he has announced that the 2027 ICC competition will be his final World Cup for India.
“For me, it’s the last World Cup I’m going to play for India. And that is my motivation,” he added.
(JioStar inputs)
