India skipper Shubman Gill lavished praise on batting legend Virat Kohli, who continued his rich form and played a match-winning knock of 93 runs in the chase of 301 as the hosts defeated New Zealand by four wickets in the first ODI of the three-match series at the Kotambi Cricket Stadium.Movies
Coming off an injury layoff, Gill played a captain’s knock and scored 56 off 71 deliveries, including three boundaries and two sixes.
“Always feels great to chip in, especially when you’re chasing. Staying in the present is most important, especially for athletes. That’s what I try to do,” said Gill after the match.
The former India captain entered the match needing just 25 runs to reach 28,000 international runs and reached the milestone with a boundary off Adithya Ashok in the 13th over. In doing so, Kohli became the fastest cricketer to reach the milestone, achieving it in just 624 innings, 20 fewer than Sachin Tendulkar, who held the world record before Kohli broke it.
Kohli’s innings also saw him surpass Kumar Sangakkara to become the all-time second-highest run-scorer in international cricket history, moving past the Sri Lankan great’s tally of 28,016 runs. Tendulkar remains at the top with 34,357 international runs. Kohli and Gill formed a formidable 118-run partnership.
“At the moment, Kohli’s making batting look easy; it’s tough to start on these pitches. Tough to replicate what he does. Hope he keeps piling on runs,” Gill added.
The Indian skipper also confirmed that Washington Sundar, who walked off the ground with an injury after bowling only five overs in the first inning, was suffering a side strain and will go for a scan after the match.
“Arshdeep did well last series, Siraj wasn’t there, we want to keep rotating as there aren’t that many ODIs. Washington has a side strain, will go for a scan after the match.”
Even after a close defeat, New Zealand skipper Michael Bracewell was proud of his side’s effort and was in full praise of Daryl Mitchell and pacer Kyle Jamieson, who piled on the pressure on India with quick wickets.
Daryl Mitchell played a crucial anchoring role with a composed 84 as New Zealand posted a competitive total of 300/8, whereas Jamieson claimed 4 for 42 for the visitors.
“We can be proud of our effort. Taking the number 1 team in the world to the last over was a pretty good effort. If we could have got 320-330, then it would have been the difference. I wish he could have bowled 15 overs; that’s how good he was. We have some excellent batters in our unit; he has been doing it for a long time. If we had gotten a few more, then things could have been different. We talk about match-changing moments in the field; if we had taken those, then it would have been different.”
