Seven minutes past five on Wednesday evening as the sun continued its descent into the sea on the west, Mumbai’s famous local trains honked and clattered away to the east of the Wankhede Stadium, carrying thousands home to an evening of dreaming. Inside the famous arena, one man was living something he hadn’t even dreamt of.
The moment played out in the most Kohliest of ways: a whipped-flick for a two, with the ball placed between long leg and deep mid-wicket at a distance that neither of those two onrushing fielders would be able to reach quickly enough to deny the second run. Virat Kohli ran past the crease, the stumps, and the wicket-keeper before taking flight, in a celebratory leap. Then gravity, of both the literal and the situation kind, as well as the sapping humidity brought him to his knees. The helmet was yanked off, and from within it emerged a smile.
It was cricketing bedlam, a situation so wild that none of it quite made any sense until Kohli was standing once more and now bowing in reverence to the hero he’d just left behind, who was part of the applause din. Sachin Tendulkar was smiling. They were all smiling.
In a career of glittering achievements, this felt like a particularly seminal moment for the 35-year-old millennial, who was two months shy of his 10th birthday when the record for the most ODI centuries last changed hands, from Desmond Haynes to Tendulkar in the September of 1998 in Bulawayo. It was a very different time. ODI cricket was at its peak. Cricket Trump cards were in vogue. And if you ever held the Tendulkar card printed any time post 1998, you didn’t have to call out ‘hundreds’. Simply flipping the card in your hand with a smug expression was a socially accepted convention. Your opponents implicitly and grudgingly handed you the top card from their pile. No questions asked. It is likely that Kohli himself indulged in this tick. It is that record he now owns.
Kane Williamson, a great of the game, gave the 50th ODI century a more modern context when he said: “I think if you play 50 games, some people would call that a great career, to get 50 hundreds… geez…”
And if you thought he was being typically Williamson, extra generous with his compliments, then it is worth noting that the New Zealand team actually hands out mementos in the pre-match huddle when a player gets to his 50th ODI. Ish Sodhi was a recent recipient during the World Cup game against Pakistan in Bengaluru.
Disclaimer: The prediction is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision.
@Cricket Betting Tips
