Virat Kohli Picks Sachin Tendulkar's Epic 'Desertstorm Innings' As A Knock That He Wished He Had Played

Virat Kohli, the current Indian captain and one of the greatest batsman to have ever played this beautiful game, has played a lot of memorable innings during his 11-year-old-career.

Who can forget his poetic violence against Lasith Malinga and co in Hobart 2012 or his brutal 183 against Pakistan or the 82 that he scored in that virtual quarter-final against Australia in the 2016 T20 World Cup or his 141 in the 2014 Adelaide Test? Frankly, these are just a few examples. Kohli’s entire career has been glittered with innings which you can watch and play on a loop throughout your lifetime.

But, is there any knock played by any other cricketer of the past which Kohli wished he had played during his career?

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‘1998 Desert Storm’- Virat Kohli picks Sachin Tendulkar’s epic 143 as an innings he wished he had played

The Indian captain was asked the same question by Team India’s Football skipper Sunil Chhetri, and Kohli had no hesitation in naming Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar’s epic Desertstorm knock-in Sharjah 1998 where he smashed Shane Warne and his fellow Australians to the tune of 143.

“The one knock in international cricket you wished you had played?” Chhetri asked.

“1998 desert storm,” Kohli gave an instant response.

“Which one, the first one in the semi-final or the final?” Chhetri further asked.

“The first one where we qualified for the final,” Virat Kohli clarified.

That knock by Sachin Tendulkar came during the 1998 tri-nation series in Sharjah. It was the virtual knockout game for the Men in Blue, who needed to get to a certain number in a fixed number of overs against Australia in order to pip New Zealand on the back of the net run-rate.

Tendulkar decided to take matters into his own hand as he launched a brutal counter-attack over the likes of Damien Fleming, Michael Kasprowicz and Shane Warne. Tendulkar got brilliant support from Nayan Mongia, who was pushed up the order as a ‘pinch-hitter’.

The duo shared a 100-run-stand but post-Mongia’s wicket, Indians endured a middle-order collapse and the task became even more arduous when the game was halted for a brief period due to a massive sandstorm in Sharjah.

But, Sachin had different ideas. Once the storm subsided, he came out like a possessed beast, who not only wanted to carry his side into the finals but also lead them to victory in the match.

The Master Blaster went absolutely beserk, hitting everything and everyone out of the attack, in a brutal yet sumptuous display of hitting. Tendulkar was eventually dismissed for 143 but not before he had ensured India’s entry into the finals. Two days later, he did an encore in the grand finale.

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