Virat Kohli, the Indian cricketer, was awarded the best fielder medal for his outstanding fielding performance in the 2023 World Cup match against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
In a light-hearted ceremony within the dressing room, he received the medal from fielding coach T Dilip and embraced the recognition with the kind of infectious enthusiasm one would expect from a child.
India secured a victory over Australia, winning by six wickets in their opening 2023 World Cup encounter in Chennai. After choosing to bat first, Australia was dismissed for 199 in 49.3 overs.
Although India encountered early batting troubles with a score of 2/3, they recovered and achieved the target in 41.2 overs. Virat Kohli was actively involved in the game from the start.
He made an exceptional diving catch at slip to eliminate Mitchell Marsh without scoring, courtesy of Jasprit Bumrah’s delivery. Later in the Australian innings, he secured a more straightforward catch at mid-off to dismiss Adam Zampa, this time from Hardik Pandya’s bowling.
The BCCI released a behind-the-scenes video of Kohli receiving the best fielder medal in recognition of his outstanding performance during the 2023 World Cup match against Australia.
In the dressing room, after their decisive victory over Australia, all the Indian players are shown in high spirits. The Indian cricket board posted this video on their social media platforms along with the following caption:
“BTS from the #TeamIndia dressing room 🇮🇳 A kind of first 🥇 And the best fielder of the match award goes to….�.”
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyKfi-zIfEJ/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Following his impressive fielding performance, Kohli was a key figure in India’s chase. The team got off to a challenging start, with Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, and Shreyas Iyer being dismissed for ducks, resulting in a score of 2/3 after two overs.
Kohli (85 off 116) and KL Rahul (97* off 115) then joined forces, forming a partnership that contributed 165 runs for the fourth wicket and ultimately secured a memorable victory for India.
Gautam Gambhir praises Virat Kohli’s innings against Australia
Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir commended Virat Kohli for his exceptional performance against Australia in the World Cup match. He encouraged young players to take note of how to handle pressure, drawing from the former Indian captain’s example.
Gambhir expressed his views on Kohli’s innings during an appearance on Star Sports:
“Imagine when you’re 2 or 3 down for two. You can’t go out there and hit a long ball. You will still need to be able to absorb the pressure and try and rotate those strikes. And I’m sure these young cricketers coming through will learn from Virat Kohli. That is very important and that is why he’s so consistent,” he said.
Kohli struck six boundaries during his innings and was eventually caught at midwicket by Josh Hazlewood after attempting a pull shot.
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