‘Felt I Had Gone Back 8-9 Years’: Kuldeep Yadav, Tilak Varma & Arshdeep Singh In Awe Of Virat Kohli: Watch | Cricket News

Virat Kohli smashed his 52nd ODI and 83rd international hundred (PTI)

Virat Kohli smashed his 52nd century, propelling India to a 17-run victory and a 1-0 lead in the three-game ODI series against South Africa in the first ODI in Ranchi.

His outstanding innings of 135 off 120 balls, featuring 11 fours and seven sixes, was the cornerstone of India’s total and included a crucial 136-run partnership with Rohit Sharma. Kohli reached his century with a boundary off Marco Jansen, sparking massive celebrations and even a fan invasion. This milestone was significant as Kohli broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record for the most centuries in a single international format, with his 52 ODI tons now standing as a remarkable achievement in world cricket.

Tilak Varma, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav and Ryan ten Doeschate were left in awe.

“We have seen one of the best knocks again. I’m very happy that I have seen 100 of Virat bhai live. Since last 17 years, he has been always electrifying in the field, the batting, fielding everything,” Tilak Varma said in a vide posted by BCCI.

“I’ve learned a lot, and yeah, it’s pleasure to watch him live, and I’ll be keep talking to him, and as much as I can I learn, and if I get an opportunity in the coming games, I can implement in the games,” he added.

“Yeah nice back to winning ways was very pleasing. Is the guys identified that we need a premium score and that wicket, they knew the dew was going to come in, and the way the batters went about it. And obviously Virat, a big 100, and getting us out of the blocks finishing off to get us a score that was above, you know what you normally need in the wicket like this was good,” Ryan ten Doeschate said.

“Banter is something me being a Punjabi, we try to keep having fun with each other. We try yo keep the teams’s environment light and fun-loving, because you know, there is pressure in the match. Everyone has expectations from you. But even at that time, how you can enjoy the moment, that’s what we try to do and I try to make my teammates enjoy it too. Don’t feel too much pressure,” Arshdeep Singh said.

“My career started with Virat bhai when he was the captain. The way he batted, I felt I had gone back 8-9 years. The way he was batting in 2017, 2018, 2018, 2016. It was a very good inning and he looked very confident. Whatever his shot selection was, the ball was coming nicely off the bat. It feels good to be with him. You get to learn a lot. You alway get inputs. Even in bowling, you get inputs as to what you can do. It feels good to be with the seniors. There is energy and intensity in the team as you have seen in the field, we are very lucky with it,” Kuldeep Yadav said.