ODI World Cup 2023: 'Kohli didn't want to complete 100,' reveals KL Rahul after India beat Bangladesh

ODI World Cup 2023: 'Kohli didn't want to complete 100,' reveals KL Rahul after India beat Bangladesh

Brian Lara doesn't want Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to open the innings

Virat Kohli hit the winning six as India beat Bangladesh by seven wickets to get the fourth consecutive win in the ODI World Cup 2023 on October 19 in Pune. With the six, Kohli also completed his 48th ODI ton - one short of former India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's world record of 49 ODI tons. Kohli, however, wasn't too sure about getting 100 and not taking singles to win the match as India needed just two runs with him batting on 97.

Kohli's partner in the middle, KL Rahul, however, persuaded him to to go for the century. "He [Kohli] was confused, he said it will not look too nice, not to take the single, it's still a World Cup, and it's still a big stage. 'I don't want to look like I am just trying to get the milestone'," Rahul told Star Sports after the match.

"But I said, I mean it is not won but still I think we'll win quite easily, so if you can get to the milestone why not, you must try. And he did that in the end. I wasn't going to run the singles anyway," he added.

Kohli eventually decided to go for the hundred and lofted Nasum Ahmed over mid-on for the match-winning shot in the 42nd over which also completed his century. The Indian batter finished with 103 not out off 97 balls - pipping teammate Ravindra Jadeja for the Player of the Match award as well. Have a look at the winning six below:

Talking about the inning after the match, Kohli, who already had two fifties in three games prior to the Bangladesh match, said: "I wanted to make a big contribution. I have had a few fifties in World Cups, and I have never really converted them so I just wanted to finish the game off this time around. Yeah, hang on till the end which is what I have done over the years for the team."

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India next take on New Zealand, who are also unbeaten so far with four wins in four games, on October 22 in Dharamshala.

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About the Author

Prashant Talreja is an Assistant Editor at WION, specializing in sports: cricket, tennis, golf, football, etc. With over 12 years of experience in sports journalism, Talreja has pr...Read More