India's cricketing icon Virat Kohli has announced his retirement from T20 International cricket following his stellar performance in the T20 World Cup 2024 final, where he was awarded the player of the match. Kohli, known for his gritty knock of 76 runs off 59 balls, guided India to a competitive total of 176/7 in the first innings of the final against a formidable opponent.
Watch Full Video of Virat Kohli Announced Retirement from T20I:
Watch Winning Moments of Team India:In an emotional post-match speech, Kohli expressed that it was time for the next generation to take over, confirming that the 2024 T20 World Cup would be his last in the format.
"This was my last T20 World Cup, this is exactly what we wanted to achieve. One day you feel like you can't get a run and this happens, God is great. Just the occasion, now or never kind of situation. This was my last T20 game playing for India. We wanted to lift that cup. Wanted to Yes I have, this was an open secret. Not something that I wasn't going to announce even if we had lost. Time for the next generation to take the T20 game forward. It's been a long wait for us, waiting to win an ICC tournament. You look at someone like Rohit, he's played 9 T20 World Cups and this is my sixth. He deserves it," Kohli said
India's victory in the final against Heinrich Klaasen-led opposition saw a remarkable turnaround in the last five overs, thanks to the efforts of Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah. Their collective performance secured India's win by a narrow margin of 7 runs, sealing Kohli's illustrious T20I career on a high note.
Kohli leaves the T20I arena as the second-highest run-scorer in history, with 4188 runs to his name, trailing only behind fellow teammate Rohit Sharma.
