IND vs SA 2022: Virat Kohli completes 1000 runs in T20 World Cup
Senior Indian batter Virat Kohli on Sunday added another feather to his decorated cap during a Super 12 stage game of the T20 World Cup against South Africa at the Perth Stadium.
He became the second batter to complete 1000 in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in the history of the tournament during the match.
Before the South Africa clash, Kohli had 989 runs from 21 innings in the World T20. He came in to bat after South Africa speedster Lungi Ngidi sent India skipper Rohit Sharma packing in the fifth over.
Kohli played two beautiful shots off Ngidi; a charming cover drive was followed by a whip off the legs through mid-wicket. The second boundary took his score to 12 and helped him attain the 1000-run mark in T20 World Cups.
However, Kohli's stay at the pitch was short as he was undone by an Ngidi short ball. The former India skipper was, as a result, dismissed for the first time in the current edition of the T20 World Cup.
MILESTONE ALERT 🚨
Virat Kohli becomes the second player to get to 1000 runs in the Men's #T20WorldCup 🙌 https://t.co/IcijlHoqWH
The ace batsman has now amassed 1001 runs from 22 innings at 83.41 and a strike rate of 131.71, including 12 fifty-plus scores. He joined former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene in the exclusive club of 1000 T20 World Cup run-scorers.
Jayawardene scored 1016 runs in 31 innings at 39.07 in the showpiece event from 2007 to 2014. The star Indian batter is just 16 runs shy of overhauling Jayawardene at the top of the list of most runs in T20 World Cups.
Another strong result. 🇮🇳💪 https://t.co/J5gKb6za8F
Kohli leading Indian charge at T20 World Cup
The Delhi-born batsman has been in sublime form in his fifth T20 World Cup event. Kohli scored a phenomenal unbeaten 82 against Pakistan in Melbourne to pull off a sensational win for India in a 160-run chase. He continued his stellar run against the Dutch with a 44-ball 62, striking three boundaries and two sixes.
However, he could only manage 12 against as South Africa, but a brilliant 40-ball 68 by Surya Kumar Yadav helped India reach 133/9 on the face of some stellar Proteas' pace bowling. In response, the South Africans were at 40/3 off 10 overs at the time of publishing after being rocked by some great swing bowling by the Indians.
He played his first T20 World Cup for India in the 2012 edition in Sri Lanka. His best record in this event was in 2016, where he accumulated 273 runs in five games at an average of 136.50.