Virat Kohli retires from T20Is after steering India to World Cup trophy

Senior India batter Virat Kohli on Saturday announced his retirement from T20Is, after he went onto help India beat South Africa by seven runs in the 2024 T20 World Cup final and clinch their second title. Kohli contributed 76 runs off 59 balls to guide India to 176/7 and set the platform for their eventual title win .

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Kohli retires from the shortest format of international cricket having scored 4112 runs from 124 T20Is at an average of 48.38 and a strike-rate of 137.2. The Delhi batter has also scored one century (122* vs Afghanistan in 2022) and 38 fifties in T20 internationals.

Kohli made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2010, scoring an unbeaten 26 off 21 balls in a winning cause.

“This was my last T20 World Cup, this is exactly what we wanted to achieve. One day you feel like you can’t get a run and this happens, God is great. Just the occasion, now or never kind of situation. This was my last T20 game playing for India,” the 35-year-old said on receiving the Player of the Match award after the final.

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Kohli then called on the next generation of youngsters to take the team forward in the shortest format. “We wanted to lift that cup. Wanted to Yes I have, this was an open secret. Not something that I wasn’t going to announce even if we had lost. Time for the next generation to take the T20 game forward and do wonders as we have seen them do in the IPL. I have no doubts that they will keep the flag waving high and take this team further from here now,” he added.

Kohli came into the final against South Africa on the back of poor form, having scored just 75 runs from seven matches. He opened the batting once again with Rohit Sharma as the duo began on a brisk note, with Kohli collecting three boundaries in the first over.

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However, India lost Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, and Suryakumar Yadav in the powerplay and were reduced to 35/3 at one stage. Kohli, along with all-rounder Axar Patel (47) scripted a gritty fightback with a 73-run stand that took India to 176/7.

In reply, South Africa lost Reeza Hendricks and captain Aiden Markram early but Tristan Stubbs (31) and Heinrich Klaasen (52) led a spirited fightback to keep Proteas in the hunt. However, Hardik Pandya (3/20), Jasprit Bumrah (2/20), and Arshdeep Singh (2/18) were too good whereas Axar finished with figures of 1/49.

This is India’s first ICC title since the 2013 Champions Trophy.