"When He Felt The Heat...": Sunil Chhetri Takes Deep Dive Into His Bond With Virat Kohli

13.07.2023 - 05:01 sports.ndtv.com

Eighteen years and 92 international goals since his India debut, skipper Sunil Chhetri said that he could not have ever scripted his career the way it has unfolded in the last two decades.

The 38-year-old, who led the Blue Tigers to successive championship victories in the form of the Intercontinental Cup and the SAFF Championship, is eternally grateful for the love that the masses continue to shower upon him at every given opportunity.

Chhetri expressed ecstasy at the course that his playing career has undertaken. The star striker has thrived in multiple clubs across the country and prospered in his overseas stints too.

However, it is his unbreakable bond with the senior national team that continues to garner affection for him everywhere he goes. "If anyone would have given me a book and asked me to write my dream life down back then, maybe, I would not have written it the way it has turned out to be.

Football Virat Kohli Sunil Chhetri India

The Indian cricket team were completely outplayed by West Indies as they slumped to a six-wicket loss in the second ODI match in Barbados. The visitors decided to rest both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli after winning the first match of the series but their batters were unable perform on Saturday as India were all out for just 181. Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt believes that the current India team lacks players who can ideally replace Rohit or Virat at present and he had an interesting solution to the problem. Butt said that India can experiment with the opening pair of Shubman Gill and Shikhar Dhawan with Rohit and Kohli coming at No.3 and No.4 respectively.

Watch: Virat Kohli Shares Valuable Tips With West Indies Batter, Star's Gesture Is Viral

Star batter Virat Kohli didn't get a chance to bat in the first ODI against West Indies on Thursday as the management decided to shuffle the batting order. With the visitors chasing a modest target of 115, Ishan Kishan opened the batting with Shubman Gill, with captain Rohit Sharma coming in at no. 7. Kohli, however, did not bat in the chase as India won the match by five wickets. After the match, Kohli was seen having a chat with West Indies captain Shai Hope.

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After winning against West Indies in the Test series, the Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team will eye a good result in the three-ODI series that begins in Barbados on Thursday. The ODI squad bears a distinct look with the likes of Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Umran Malik, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya coming in. With the World Cup in a few months' time, the ODI series against the West Indies is part of that preparatory process. Ahead of the first ODI, Kohli faced Pandya in the nets and gave a bizarre gesture while batting at the nets.

What Virat Kohli Told Ishan Kishan Before Giving His No. 4 Spot On Day 4 Of 2nd Test

After smashing a half-century against West Indies in the second Test, Indian wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan said that Virat Kohli backed him to bat at number four and play his natural game, adding that Rishabh Pant also helped him out with his bat positioning at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). India set a massive total of 365 runs for West Indies to win the ongoing second Test, and Windies lost two wickets in the final session of day four in Port of Spain on Monday.

Virat Kohli Shows His Dance Moves While Eating Pancakes. Video Is Viral

Virat Kohli marked his 500th appearance for India with his 76th international century in the ongoing second Test against West Indies in Trinidad. In the first innings, Kohli slammed a brilliant 121 to set up India's total of 438 runs after the hosts had opted to bowl. Kohli looked in good touch before getting run out unfortunately. The former India captain, who made his Test debut during the tour of West Indies in 2011, also overtook batting great Brian Lara in the list of players with the most numbers of centuries while batting at no. 4.

"He Walks The Talk When...": India Fielding Coach On What Makes Virat Kohli Special

India's fielding coach T Dilip praised former captain Virat Kohli's fitness levels after the batter reached 121 on the Day 2 of the ongoing second Test against West Indies here at Queen's Park Oval. Playing in his 500th international match, Virat Kohli scored his first overseas century since 2018 for India. Kohli, who resumed on 87 on day two of the second Test match against West Indies, completed a flawless hundred to take his tally of Test hundreds on par with Sir Donald Bradman.