“Is it the last time we saw King Kohli walk out to bat in Indian jersey?”
“Is it the beginning of the end?”
Such questions are doing the rounds on social media after India’s star batter Virat Kohli was dismissed for a second consecutive duck in the second ODI against Australia in Adelaide today.
The 36-year-old lasted just four balls, before falling LBW to Xavier Bartlett. He was rightfully advised against taking a review by Rohit Sharma, who went on to score 73. Kohli was dismissed for an eight-ball duck in the rain-truncated first ODI at Perth on October 19 – his first duck in ODIs Down Under. Incidentally, it is the first time since his debut in 2008 that Kohli has registered two consecutive ducks in ODI cricket.
But, what caught everybody’s attention was his gesture to the applauding Adelaide crowd before he stepped off the field after being dismissed. He lifted his right hand, holding the gloves, and acknowledged the ovation, which several netizens interpreted as a goodbye. Adelaide has been one of his favourite venues in Australia, having scored 975 runs – the most runs by a visiting batter across formats.
Kohli’s gesture set the internet abuzz, with netizens speculating whether it was an acknowledgement of his final outing in Australia or a signal of retirement from the last international format he is still active in.
Earlier, Australia captain Mitchell Marsh won the toss and elected to bowl first against India. While the visitors fielded an unchanged XI, the Aussies made two changes, bringing in Alex Carey for Josh Philippe and Bartlett in place of Nathan Ellis.
India got off to a poor start yet again, losing Kohli and skipper Shubman Gill (9) in the seventh over. Sharma and Shreyas Iyer (61) steadied the Indian innings with an 118-run stand, but their dismissals in the space of three overs robbed India of a chance to post a challenging total. Wickets fell at regular intervals, with Axar Patel (44) being the only batter to play an innings of substance.
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Harshit Rana (24*) and Arshdeep Singh (13) used the long handle to some good effect to help India reach 264/9 in 50 overs. For Australia, Adam Zampa did the star turn, literally, picking up 4/60, while Bartlett scalped 3/39.
Teams
India:
Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj.
Australia:
Mitchell Marsh (c), Travis Head, Matthew Short, Matthew Renshaw, Alex Carey (wk), Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Owen, Xavier Bartlett, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.