New Delhi [India], January 28 (ANI): It was a memorable homecoming for star India batter Virat Kohli as the veteran batter joined the Delhi squad to prepare for his first Ranji Trophy match in 12 years at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday.
The stadium, where the superstar batter began his journey in first-class cricket back in November 2006 with a brief outing of 10 runs, has made his return to his home stadium with contributions that make him a “10 on 10” cricketer in the eyes of millions of his fans. 9,000-plus Test runs, 30 centuries and multiple records later, the 36-year-old has taken to a place where it all started in a bid to refine his skillset for perhaps one last peak before he hangs up his bat.
A massive crowd had gathered to watch Virat practising, with plenty of media in attendance as well. He came to the stadium at 9:30 AM and started the session with a football drill with his teammates, during which he was captured joking and laughing with his teammates. There were some 100-metre sprints done as well before the batting session, as per ESPNCricinfo.
Virat had a 55-minute outing in nets, divided carefully into a 15-minute session of throwdown, a 20-minute session of spin bowling and another 20-minute session of blistering pace, including that of his Indian teammate Navdeep Saini. Virat also emphasised his backfoot game, including shots like a square shot and late cut. It is a part of his game that Virat has not showcased against bowlers as of late, opting for more front-footed gameplay where he tries to charge towards the delivery.
During the throwdown session, the blade of Virat’s bat was much thinner than his usual bats, a change due to the ball getting the outside edge of his bat on multiple occasions during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The session was a mix of some defensive and aggressive strokes. He was beaten outside off stump a couple of times, a massive area of weakness in recent years, but middled other deliveries well with pulls and short-armed jabs.
While facing spin, Virat reverted to his normal bat and faced Delhi’s left-arm spinners Harsh Tyagi and Sumit Mathur and offspinner Sumit Sharma. He used cut shots against them on some short balls bowled by them. Tyagi did manage to beat Virat twice, but the session saw Virat largely in control and steady.
During the pace practice sessions, he faced Navdeep, some other right-arm fast bowlers and left-armer Siddhant Sharma. Siddhant beat Virat twice with an angle taking the ball away from him. After that, Delhi coach Sarandeep Singh advised Virat to use a middle and off-stump guard. After obeying his coach’s advice, Virat managed to deliver some of the deliveries that followed beautifully, to the delight of his coach and others present. Saini also managed to get the better of Virat twice, but Virat once again looked in control. He left plenty of balls outside the off stump and utilised his backfoot game for shorter balls, pulling and jabbing them in trademark Virat fashion.
During the drill, an eight-year-old young fan, Kabir, whose father Shawej Khan played with Virat in age-group cricket, watched him carefully. After the session ended, Shawej and Virat reunited, shared a hug and the batting legend signed his son’s bat.
Virat’s practice session finished with some slip fielding and outfield catching drills that he did for half an hour.
Virat’s comeback game would be against Railways from January 30 onwards, where he will be playing under the captaincy of a young Ayush Badoni. Delhi is in the sixth spot in Group D, with a win, two losses and three draws. Their previous match saw them surrender to Saurashtra by 10 wickets, with India’s star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja shining with a 12-wicket haul, including a seven-fer in the second innings.
The 36-year-old’s last appearance in Ranji was back in November 2012 against Uttar Pradesh, in which he was dismissed for 14 and 42 runs in both innings by pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
The 2006/07 Ranji season was Virat’s first-ever appearance in the competition. The batter did rather decently, scoring 257 runs in six matches and nine innings at an average of 36.71, with a best score of 90 and two half-centuries.
The next season in 2007/08 was statistically a better outing for Virat, as he scored 373 runs in five matches and eight innings at an average of 53.28, with two centuries and a best score of 169. But inconsistency was a big issue for the batter as he managed 98 runs in six innings in which he did not cross the fifty-run mark.
The 2008-09 was a solid season for Virat, as he scored 174 runs in five innings and four games, an average of 34.80, with two fifties and a best score of 83.
The next two seasons 2009/10 and 2010/11 were breakthrough seasons for the batter, which combined with his brilliant international white-ball performances, helped him earn the Indian Test cap in 2011.
In the 2009/10 season, he scored 374 runs in three matches and six innings at an average of 93.50, with a century and two fifties. His best score was 145. He followed this with 339 runs in four matches and six innings at an average of 56.50, with two centuries and a best score of 173.
The 2012/13 season saw him play just one game against UP, in which he scored a total of 56 runs.
Overall in his Ranji career, Virat has scored 1,573 runs at an average of 50.77, with five centuries and six fifties in 23 matches.
Fans would no doubt, love to see the superstar batter back in Delhi clothing once again, as he seeks another peak in Test cricket after years of struggle and inconsistency.
Virat has been facing a massive decline in his Test performances that dates back to the start of 2020. In 39 Test matches since the start of 2020, Virat has scored just 2,028 runs at an average of 30.72, with just three centuries and nine fifties to show. His best score is 186.
Virat ended the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle with 751 runs in 14 matches and 25 innings at an average of 32.65, with two centuries and three fifties. His best score was 121.
In 10 Tests last year, he scored just 417 runs at an average of 24.52 with just one century and fifty, to conclude a disappointing year. (ANI)
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