Virat Kohli’s love for big scores doesn’t need a long description. He’s right behind Sachin Tendulkar in century count in international cricket.
And he’s among a few Indians who’ve scored centuries in each of the three international formats. Kohli entered that exclusive list with his maiden and only T20I century in 2022.
While he had five hundreds in T20 cricket, this one took a little longer. But it unlocked the next best phase of his career.
So, here’s a rundown on Virat Kohli’s only century in T20I cricket.
The Occasion
India were up against Afghanistan in the 2022 Asia Cup. They were already out of the tournament with two losses in the Super Four stage.
So, the contest didn’t carry much weight. But India wanted to end the tournament on a good note ahead of the T20 World Cup.
And most importantly, Kohli wanted to get past his lean patch. While he was in good touch of late, he failed to convert his starts into triple digits.
The last of Kohli’s international centuries had come in November 2019. So there was no better chance than this to end his almost three years of dry spells of centuries.
And Kohli grabbed the chance with both hands when Afghanistan let India bat first.
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It was a typical knock from Kohli. Something you’ve perhaps seen him do several times.
He opened for India for just the ninth time in his T20I career. It wasn’t a challenge for him, since he had opened in the IPL.
The Delhi batter took his time to settle in. He was 10 off 10 before the final powerplay over kicked in.
Kohli fetched 15 runs to move into the 20s. As the field opened up, Afghanistan looked to get rid of him.
And Mohammad Nabi created a chance in the eighth over. Kohli mis-timed a pull. But Ibrahim Zadran couldn’t hold on to the ball as it landed outside the boundary for a six.
Some relief for Kohli and India. Then he dug deeper with occasional boundaries and constant singles.
In the meantime, Kohli reached fifty off 32 balls, the third time he went past the mark in the tournament. This time, he made sure to convert it into the big one.
Once the innings entered the death overs, Kohli turned on his accelerator mode. A pretty usual sight for everyone.
He targeted Fareed Ahmad and Fazalhaq Farooqi. He creamed Ahmad for 24 runs, including a six and three fours. Farooqi, though, went for 30 runs, including two maximums and three fours.
Kohli, meanwhile, ended the dry spell on the second ball of the 19th over. He pulled a six over deep midwicket off Ahmad.
The six gave him his maiden T20I hundred. And the first international century in the last 84 innings.
He needed 53 balls to bring up the magic number to let out a big smile, a moment Indian fans had been desperate to see for a long time.
Kohli stayed unbeaten on 122 in the end. The knock came at a strike rate of 200 with the help of 12 fours and 6 sixes.
His balanced knock saw India put up 212 on the board, which helped India return home with a win.
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