Online Sports Desk
Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu has said that even captain Shubman Gill, who is the top-ranked ODI batter currently, found it difficult to bat on the Eden Park track, but ace batter Virat Kohli showed no signs of duress, as he smacked a 51-ball 74 to lead India’s chase in the first ODI against New Zealand.
New Zealand, put in to bat by Gill after a brief shower delayed the toss, were skittled for a modest 185 in 40.2 overs. Arshdeep Singh led the attack with 4/70, while Gurnoor Brar claimed 3/44 and Anshul Kamboj returned 2/22.
Kohli made his presence felt in the field as well, taking a spectacular diving catch at second slip to dismiss Natha Smith.
India’s chase was interrupted twice by rain. Rohit Sharma fell for a duck in the opening over, bringing Kohli to the crease before the second over was completed. Play was halted with India at 54/1 before a second shower reduced the innings to 32 overs and revised their DLS target to 143.
“As a batter, you know that the wicket was very, very tough to bat on. The World No. 1-ranked batter found it tough and Kohli showed what he is all about. It’s amazing to bat like that in the first game of the series,” Rayudu said while speaking on Cricbuzz.
“I am sure Shubman Gill, standing at the other end, even if he wanted to dominate the proceedings, I don’t think at the moment he could have; he would have watched the King bat and given it to him,” Rayudu said.
“He showed off today; it’s unbelievable. I think only 2 or 3 batters in the world can do that on this surface and he has every right to show off. This is a day he knows that he can show everyone what the difference or the gap is between him and all the others,” Rayudu added.
Kohli has now scored 670 runs in 14 ODI innings in New Zealand, at a stunning average of 51.53.
