Dubai: The peerless Virat Kohli on Sunday said his job is not just to win ICC trophies but also ensure that Indian cricket is at a better place when he walks into the sunset, as the team won a third Champions Trophy title with a four-wicket victory over New Zealand here.
India completed a chase of 252 with six balls to spare.
“When you leave, you want to leave the team in a better place, I feel we’ve a squad that’s ready to take on the world for the next eight years,” an ecstatic Kohli said after the end of the final.
With a lot of speculations going around on his future, Virat Kohli indicated that he is going to stick around a little bit longer after India won a record 3rd Champions Trophy title defeating New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday.
“It’s been amazing, we wanted to bounce back after a tough Australian tour, and wanted to win a big tournament, so to win the Champions Trophy is amazing. So much talent in the dressing room, they’re trying to take their game further and we’re just happy to be of help. Sharing our experience and that’s what makes this Indian team so strong,” Kohli said.
With 218 runs in five innings, including a century against Pakistan and a match-winning fifty in semi-final against Australia, Kohli finished fifth on the batting charts of the tournament.
“Everyone has put up impactful performances, we’ve been part of an amazing team, the amount of work we’ve done in the practice sessions, it feels great (to win). When you leave, you want to leave the team in a better place, I feel we’ve a squad that’s ready to take on the world for the next 8 years,” Kohli said.
In the match, skipper Rohit Sharma led from the front with an excellent half-century as a resolute India held their nerve to win an unprecedented third Champions Trophy title with a four-wicket victory over New Zealand.
Bowling first after Rohit lost his 12th straight toss, India’s spinners restricted New Zealand to 251 for seven in the allotted 50 overs, with Kuldeep Yadav (2/40) and Varun Chakaravarthy (2/45) making significant contributions with the ball.
India completed the chase of 252 with six balls to spare after Rohit (76 off 83 balls) and Shreyas Iyer (48 off 62 balls) shone with the bat.
