From the by lanes of Paschim Vihar to a cricketing God: Tribute to a living legend

I vividly reminisce the day when I first came to know about the man who was destined for greater things in life, man who was going to be a mega star, who will have cult following and a God like status never heard or seen before. As a sports connossieur who follows the game fervently, I had an inkling that there was something about this young man which made him so endearing.

Yes, I am talking about a young man all of 17 years of age at the time, representing Delhi in Ranji trophy match when he got the news of sad demise of his father. In the moment of bereavement any normal human being would have left the scene to be with his father but this boy was made of steel. He did not budge, stood his ground, continued playing the match and scored 90 odd and after that he performed his father’s last rites.
Even the great men cry, he called his coach that night and cried a hoarse for not losing his father but for getting out. Maybe it was his emotions coming out.

This story is part of famous Indian cricketing folklore. In the words of his mother Saroj Kohli “Virat changed a bit after that day, overnight he became a much more matured person.”

The entire country watched his emotion, his passion when he lifted under 19 world cup and probably that is what rubbed off to the other team members as well. At that time it wasn’t difficult to prognosticate that this young kid is going to lead India one day.

When we talk of 2011, role of Gautam Gambhir and Virat kohli is often ignored. Gambhir was the pivot around whose batting the entire innings was built and Virat provided the ex-factor which led to the country achieving greatness. The words which he uttered on lifting Sachin Tendulkar on his shoulders have been deeply ingrained into our memories. “He carried the burden of the nation for 21 years, so it is the time we carried him on our shoulders.”

Lot of stuff has been written on Virat Kohli and how success has got into his head and he is unable to marshal his troops but having known him for last 12 years, I can vouch that he is the best man to lead country. It is really deplorable that people who are criticizing him did not even achieve half of what Kohli has already achieved in his young career. Kohli holds the world record for the fastest batsman to 10,000 runs in 205 innings. Kohli has the second highest number of centuries and the highest number of centuries in run-chases in the world.

Over 10000 runs in ODI cricket at an average which is unparallel and has never been heard off. Even the record of great Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar pales in comparison and if we go by the sheer number of match winning innings that Kohli has already played,it is something unbelievable. I will not be surprised if Kohli supersedes the God of cricket in this department as well.

A teenager who lost his father at a young age of seventeen and still made it to the top of Indian cricket. It is this passion, it is this love for the game which gives him the impetus to scale new heights all the time all the while. It is this passion and love for the game which keeps him agog. Kohli has captained India in 46 test matches and 57 ODIs and has proved his mettle both as a player and as a captain. His winning average is more than 56% as a captain more than the big MS.

If we look at his batting performance since past three years he has performed better than any other player. No Asian captain has ever won test matches in South Africa, England and Australia in a single calendar year and Indian winning under Kohli is a testimony to his greatness. All captains make mistakes, the great Saurav Ganguly made a horrendous decision of bowling in 2003 world cup finals. Mohd Azzruddin made the gross mistake of mis reading the pitch during 1996 world cup semifinals when India lost to Sri Lanka.

When you have to make decisions not all decisions will go your way, it is not easy to take decisions when your every move is under the scanner and when winning and losing becomes more than the matter of life and death. There is a very thin line between a bold decision and a stupid decision. Looking into the Perth’s pitch probably anybody would have decided to play four fast bowlers especially when India doesn’t have anybody like Nathan Lyon in their ranks. But at the end of the day this Indian team under the captaincy of Virat Kohli has won its maiden series in Australia which is one of the most difficult places to play cricket.

Job of captain of Indian cricket team is the most difficult job in the world. His head is always on the chopping block and only a person whose nerves are made of steel can take that job. This job is surely not for faint hearted and as Ravi shastri said it is very easy to fire blanks from millions of miles but to perform on field is different ball game.

Let us all pray that this superman from India continues to enthrall till eternity for here is a young bloke who has given us unbridled joy. His passion is what drives our entire nation.

Rather than criticizing him at this juncture when world cup is so near let’s encourage our current crop of players.

As of now it’s time to savor. Win in Australia is surely a feather in Kohli’s cap but to see him lift the world cup trophy will surely be an icing in the cake.

It’s not Kohli’s dream it’s a billion’s dream

Author: Siddhartha Dua