Virat Kohli again became the victim of Joffra ArcherImage Credit source: Getty Images
Team India’s star batsman Virat Kohli has not got much success on the soil of England. Often here he misses playing big innings. The same thing happened in the second match of the ODI series between India and England in Cardiff. After getting out early in the first match of the ODI series, Kohli played a composed innings this time but could not convert it into a big score. Kohli’s luck was also such that he got a lease of life and then got out on the very next ball.
The Indian team, which came to play an ODI match after 12 years at the Sophia Gardens Stadium in Cardiff, batted first. After the fast start of captain Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, who came to the crease, also started scoring runs as soon as he came. After opening the account with a four, Kohli continued scoring runs at a strike rate of more than 100, while on the other hand, batsmen like Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan were struggling.
Kohli, who scored only 5 runs in the first ODI match played in Birmingham, added more runs to his score this time. The former captain displayed his excellent batting and completed his half-century in 50 balls. During this period, there was a partnership of more than 60 runs between him and Shreyas Iyer. At such a time, England was looking for a wicket and captain Harry Brook called fast bowler Joffra Archer, who had not got any success till now but Archer changed the game in his very first over.
In the 32nd over, Kohli played a shot on the on side on Archer’s third ball but failed. The ball hit his bat and went into the hands of the wicketkeeper. England appealed for catch but the umpire took the help of the third umpire. It showed that the ball had hit the ground even before it entered the keeper’s gloves. In this way Kohli got the lease of life. But on the very next ball, Kohli again played the same shot and this time the catch jumped high in the air. Adil Rashid, who was at third man, took an easy catch.
In this way Kohli was out after scoring 65 runs in 66 balls. His innings included 8 excellent fours. But the wait for the second ODI century on English soil increased further. Kohli’s only ODI century in England coincidentally came in Cardiff, when he scored 107 runs in 2011. However, this was the 13th time when Kohli scored a half-century in England.
There was another special thing in Kohli’s dismissal like this. This was the second consecutive match in which fast bowler Joffra Archer made him his victim. Archer had Kohli out LBW in Birmingham. This is special because before this series, Archer had never dismissed Kohli in international cricket. The Indian star had scored 79 runs against the English pacer without losing any wicket. But in this series he has been out twice for just 9 runs.
