It’s a blessing that I am getting to captain my country, says Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli became emotional at the end of the ODI series and stated that "playing for the country" and "leading from the front" is a blessing for him. The Indian skipper, who recently married Bollywood star Anushka Sharma, has also credited his wife for keeping him motivated during the tough times.
The Indian skipper has been in a league of his own and became the first player ever to score 500+ runs in a bilateral ODI series. Kohli, in the most productive and successful series of his career, managed to hit three hundred and a half-century which resulted in him being adjudged as man of the series for his performance. While it was obviously a thumping performance by the team, it was also an emotional roller-coaster of a ride for himself and he let that come out in the post-match presentation.
“Obviously, you want to lead from the front, and that’s a wonderful feeling. I have got eight or nine years left in my career and I want to make the most of every day. It’s a blessing that I am healthy and getting to captain my country,” Kohli said in the presentation.
In just 47 days in 2018, Kohli crossed 500 runs in ODIs which is the earliest an Indian batsman went past 500 in a calendar year with the previous best being 69 days by Sachin Tendulkar in 2003. While the series victory was much down to Kohli's performance as a batsman, other contributions came from Indian top-order and wrist-spinners. With the 29-year-old keeping a strong eye on the 2019 World Cup, this performance came as a satisfying thing for him as a skipper.
"They have shown great character – especially the two young spinners. Shikhar at the top, Rohit. The way the series went augurs well for us. We’re looking forward to the T20s. The tour is not over yet. As a team, we felt we did not play with the right frame of mind in the first two Tests. Come Johannesburg, we made up our mind that we will not take a backward step. After losing the Test series, I was talking to you. I am here talking to you after winning the ODI series,” Kohli said.
Every now and then, Kohli's then girlfriend and now wife, Anushka Sharma was subjected to much unfair trolling on social media when Kohli failed to score runs during her stay at the stadium. However, the Indian skipper, a modern-day cricketer who lives his life by his own terms, didn't speak a word against it and rather let his batting do all the talking. He piled on the runs in almost every match of the series and at the end of it, credited his better-half for her support and motivation during the tough times.
"It's been a roller-coaster tour till now. People who contribute off the field, they deserve a lot of credit as well. My wife who keeps me motivated deserves a lot of credit. She's been criticized a lot in the past. But she's one person who's kept me going throughout the tour. You want to lead from the front with your performances."