ENG vs IND 2018: Twitter Hails Virat Kohli For Yet Another Heroic Knock In England

Virat Kohli, on Sunday, once again led India from the front to revive his team’s hopes in the ongoing fourth England vs India Test.

Four years ago, this was the same country where Kohli’s reputation had taken a big beating.  In 2014, Kohli had endured a torrid time in England, scoring only 134 runs from ten innings, as India lost the series 3-1. He scored 1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, 0, 7, 6 and 20 in the five Tests and finished the series with an average of 13.40.

But that was perhaps the last time, Kohli had a modest series as far as the memory goes.  He is arguably the best batsman in the world right now and has already proved himself in Australia and South Africa. During the tour of Australia in 2014-15, he had slammed four hundreds in four Tests.

The Indian captain has since also scored six double hundreds including four in successive series. Against England in the five-Test series at home, Kohli scored 655 runs and led India to a 4-0 triumph. He was also in top form in South Africa, smashing 871 runs across formats. He was the leading run-scorer in the Test and ODI series. The right-handed batsman is now proving his mettle in England too.

In a series where batsmen from both the sides have struggled to a great extent, Kohli has looked apart.

He began the series with a splendid knock of 151 and went on to score 51 in the second innings to score a collective 200 runs at Edgbaston. He fell cheaply in both the innings at Lord’s but bounced back in style at Trent Bridge, scoring 200 runs again. In the first innings, the India star slammed 97 before scoring 103 in the second essay. The knock helped his side win the game by 203 runs.

And Kohli further enhanced his reputation with a gutsy knock on Sunday.  Kohli came to the crease when India were in a spot of bother, reeling at 17 for 2. They soon found themselves three down for just 22.

India began their chase of 245 in the worst possible manner. Stuart Broad castled KL Rahul for a duck to set the tone for the defence. And even before the visitors could recover from the early setback, James Anderson struck twice to put England well on top. He first trapped Cheteshwar Pujara for five before accounting for Shikhar Dhawan to leave India reeling at 22 for 3.

However, Kohli in the company of his deputy Ajinkya Rahane steadied the ship and batted India to a position of strength. He added 101 runs with Rahane before being dismissed by Moeen Ali for 58. Kohli might not have finished the game for India but his knock has certainly put India in contention.

And the social media did not take long to hail the India skipper. Here are some of the reactions:

@imVkohli you are the Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Schumacher, Federer and Messi of modern cricket#ENGvIND @cricbuzz

— Pratik Nishar (@Pratik_Nishar) September 2, 2018

Top innings from Kohli. Yes, it would have embraced greatness if it had ended in three figures but excellent from him nonetheless

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) September 2, 2018

500 plus runs in the series when @josbuttler is second with 260 and it tells you how good @imVkohli is. Today’s innings should just be a lesson for the openers for the mental aspect. Skill wise Virat is way ahead but mentally Rahul and Dhawan will do well to learn.

— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) September 2, 2018

What a test match. Thing to learn from @imVkohli is his mental strength. Beaten, riding his luck but fought on. Now @ajinkyarahane88 needs to steer the chase. Plays spin very well and @RishabPant777 might well play the cameo that Curran did in Edgbaston.

— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) September 2, 2018

https://twitter.com/iManishWaghela/status/1036257999881482241

Really liked that from @imVkohli – stood up and applauded the batsmen at the stroke of tea. Has put his own disappointment behind- out there on the balcony, egging the team on. Quite liked that visual ✅ ? #ENGvIND

— RK (@RK_sports) September 2, 2018

Allowing for a slice of early luck against Moeen, superb half century by @imVkohli. He’s exhausting critics of superlatives this series!

— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) September 2, 2018

What a player @imVkohli is, he is taking the game away from #England along with his deputy .
When a player shows his skill and determination when team required the most then you will termed as great player.#IndvsEng

— CricInformer(Cricket News & Fantasy Tips) (@CricInformer) September 2, 2018

THIS ENG SERIES IS BETWEEN @imVkohli VS ENGLAND AND NOT BETWEEN INDIA VS ENGLAND EXCEPT OUR BOWLERS. UNTIL OUR OPENERS DID NOT GIVE GOOD START WE CAN'T WIN A TEST OUTSIDE INDIA FORGET IT @bhogleharsha @cricketwallah @BCCI #ENGvIND

— Sat (@kalyan2505) September 2, 2018

Fastest to 4000 runs as captain in Tests:
65 Virat Kohli
71 Brian Lara
75 Ricky Ponting
80 Greg Chappell
83 Allan Border
87 Clive Lloyd
90 Alastair Cook#ENGvIND

— Rajneesh Gupta (@rgcricket) September 2, 2018

https://twitter.com/BenevolntAshan/status/1036262389229002752

Virat Kohli’s walk to the pavilion was just heart breaking. He looked like he could cry any minute. He looked so disappointed and devastated. As an Indian cricket fan that hurts more than anything else.

— V (@_heavenlyInsane) September 2, 2018