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Virat Kohli was at his brilliant best in his comeback match in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Returning to India's premier domestic 50-over tournament after 15 years, Kohli marked the start of the 32nd edition with a sublime century in Delhi's first round match against Andhra Pradesh at the Centre of Excellence (COE) Bengaluru.
Kohli looked in his elements right from the word go during Delhi's run chase of 299 in the Elite Group D match, which was played without the presence of the fans after being shifted from the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium due to security reasons.
The absence of spectators didn't deter Kohli, though. The Delhi dasher played a variety of trademark strokes, including pulls, flicks, cuts and the typical straight drives to bring up his 58th List A century off just 83 balls. He eventually got out for 131 off 101 balls, including 14 boundaries and three maximums.
With the match not being telecast live, fans were left disappointed at missing out on a batting masterclass. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) released a video of his classy century on their official X handle after Delhi's four-wicket victory.
Kohli started off by becoming the fastest Indian to reach 16000 List A runs, surpassing the Master Blaster, breaking Sachin Tendulkar. Needing just a run to achieve the landmark, Kohli completed the formality straightaway and set himself up for the run-chase.
Kohli, who completed his fifty in just 39 balls, took Delhi to the doorstep of the win. He was eventually dismissed in the 33rd over when Delhi were just 29 runs away from victory.
Earlier, fast bowler Simarjeet Singh took 5 for 54 while Andhra batter Ricky Bhui played a superb knock of 122 as the southern state put up a decent score of 298 for 8 in 50 overs.
Simarjeet was named Player of the Match for his sensational bowling spell.
Like Kohli, Rohit Sharma also marked his return to VHT with an impressive century.
Playing for Mumbai, Rohit scored 155 off 94 balls (18 fours and 9 sixes) to help his team overhaul the 237-run target set by Sikkim in just 30.3 overs in Jaipur.
