17 May,2026 09:49 AM IST | Mumbai | Anand Vasu
RCB’s Virat Kohli en route his unbeaten 105 vs KKR in Raipur on Wednesday. PIC/IPL
If Virat Kohli is not a key figure in the Indian team in the 50-over World Cup in South Africa next year, it will be the team's loss, not his.
When things came to such a pass that he was no longer a part of the Test set up or the T20 scheme of things, it was difficult to see how he would keep going. One-Day Internationals are the least played of the three formats, and at the international level, you can't just rock up from a long break and hit your straps. At least that was the thought.
In Kohli's case, fitness was never going to be an issue. This is something he sees as a way of life: weight training, eating right, living mindfully. But long breaks from competitive cricket typically accelerate the rusting process. History is littered with examples of players who played only one format and found it harder and harder to come back from layoffs.
The evidence is there from players who quit international cricket but stay on in the Indian Premier League. The first season is usually manageable, but players are a pale shadow of themselves when they come back 10 months later for the next edition. You can hit as many balls as you want in the nets, but when you're not in the heat of battle, the competitive edge is blunted.
When it was clear that Kohli (and Rohit Sharma at the same time) would only play 50-over internationals, the feeling was that it was a matter of one farewell series or two, and the end would usher itself in.
But Kohli has three hundreds and three fifties in his last seven ODIs, on top of 131 and 77 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and now he is making this IPL his own with 484 runs at a strike-rate of 165.75. Only three batsmen have more runs than him.
As the tournament builds to the business end, Kohli is stamping his authority harder. In a chase of 193 against the Kolkata Knight Riders, Kohli was sublime. At no stage did he appear to be pushing himself, running twos as hard at the end of his innings as at the beginning. The strokeplay was crisp and authoritative, and although he did not explode, there was enough momentum at the start and end to ensure his unbeaten 105 came off only 60 balls.
If it was not enough that his bat did the talking, Kohli minced no words when he said he had nothing to prove - this is true, he has all the records and silverware anyone could aspire to - and that people should "either be clear and honest upfront or be quiet and let me play."
To be fair to the Indian set-up, Kohli's returns had flagged in Tests, and in T20Is, the team had taken a new direction, so they moved on when the time came. But, for the moment, there are still opportunities to enjoy his mastery: in the IPL and ODIs, as long as the runs keep flowing.
123.2
Virat Kohli's average in his last seven ODIs - he has amassed 616 runs, including three centuries and three half-centuries
240
No of runs scored by Kohli in three ODIs this year - the most by an Indian
484
No of runs scored by Kohli in the ongoing IPL @ 53.77
