Team India batter Virat Kohli became the holder of an embarrassing record after scoring a golden duck in the third T20I against Afghanistan at M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday.
Kohli's recent dismissal marked his 35th duck in international cricket, making him the Indian batter with the highest number of ducks. He surpassed Sachin Tendulkar's previous record of 34 ducks. The overall record for the most ducks in international cricket belongs to Zaheer Khan, who has 44 ducks.
Fans were keen to observe how Kohli would adapt to the aggressive approach after being absent from the T20I side for 14 months. Following his absence in the series opener due to personal reasons, Kohli managed to score a quickfire 29 runs in the second T20I in Indore.
Kohli came to bat in the third over after Yashasvi Jaiswal's dismissal. However, he struggled while attempting to take on Fareed Ahmed immediately. The back-of-a-length delivery hit high on his bat as he stepped down the track in an attempt to clear mid-off.
His last duck in international cricket occurred during the 2023 ODI World Cup against England. He faced difficulties for nine deliveries on a challenging Lucknow pitch before being dismissed by David Willey.
Meanwhile, Indian captain became the first batter to make five men's T20I hundreds.
In the face of a batting collapse, Rohit Sharma showcased resilience and then aggressively pursued his century in the T20 format, setting himself apart as the inaugural player to achieve five centuries in men's T20Is.
Making a comeback to T20Is after an absence of over a year for this series, Rohit had faced two ducks in the initial games. However, he orchestrated a remarkable turnaround on Tuesday, crafting a century off 64 balls.
India faced a precarious situation at the start of the innings, opting to bat first, as Yashasvi Jaiswal (4), Virat Kohli (0), Shivam Dube (1), and Sanju Samson (0) all departed cheaply.
Despite the early setback at 22/4, Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh orchestrated a century partnership, rescuing the innings.
In India's final T20I match before the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, Rohit made a bold statement with a career-best unbeaten 121, propelling India to a total beyond 200 despite the initial collapse. Meanwhile, Rinku finished unbeaten on 69, concluding the innings with three consecutive sixes.
The final over witnessed an impressive 36 runs, including five sixes, guiding India to a total of 212/4.
The unbeaten 190-run partnership between Rohit and Rinku stands as the highest for India in men's T20Is.
- Virat Kohli