“Wish me luck for Duleep trophy” - Virat Kohli’s old tweet goes viral
India cricketer Virat Kohli’s old tweet regarding his participation in the Duleep Trophy went viral on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, August 12. The post resurfaced amid contrasting reports regarding the Delhi batter’s participation in the first-class tournament.
Notably, the original tweet was shared in January 2010. The right-hander was already part of the Indian ODI setup back then. He made his Test debut against West Indies in June 2011.
Kohli wrote on Twitter on January 25, 2010:
“Wish me luck for the Duleep Trophy.”
As per reports, Kohli last played in the Duleep Trophy in 2010. The 35-year-old had represented North Zone in a game against West Zone, where he registered a half-century. His last appearance in domestic cricket came in the 2012 Ranji Trophy.
Kohli has amassed 2249 runs in 32 first-class matches (48 innings), comprising seven centuries and eight half-centuries.
Virat Kohli won’t be available for Duleep Trophy – Reports
Virat Kohli will not be available for the Duleep Trophy, according to ESPNcricinfo. The senior batter alongside India captain Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah will skip the Duleep Trophy ahead of the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh.
The tournament, however, will feature several centrally contracted players like KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Sarfaraz Khan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishabh Pant, among others. This year's Duleep Trophy will be played from September 5 to 22.
Kohli has failed to deliver with the bat in international cricket barring the 2024 T20 World Cup final, where he scored his solitary half-century against South Africa this year. He recently returned with scores of 24, 14, and 20 in his three outings against Sri Lanka in ODIs.
The right-handed batter has managed 296 runs in 14 matches (15 innings) in 2024 so far. Thus, he will be keen to amends in the upcoming Test season. He requires 58 runs to become the fourth batter after Sachin Tendulkar, Kumar Sangakkara, and Ricky Ponting to complete 27,000 runs in international cricket.
Against Bangladesh, Virat Kohli has 437 runs in six Tests (nine innings) at an average of 54.62 with the help of two centuries. He needs 152 runs to complete 9,000 runs in Tests.