One of the main reasons the Men in Blue defeated Australia in the opening semi-final of the current Champions Trophy 2025 was the performance of star batsman Virat Kohli. Interestingly, the exciting match took place on Tuesday, March 4 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai.
In the second innings of the match, Virat Kohli scored a solid 84-run knock that earned him another Player of the Match title.
The two main things that impressed the batting stalwart the most during his innings, according to former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu, were his ability to tick over the scoreboard against spinners and his game sense.
He had remarkable ability to rotate the strike between midwicket and square leg, as well as to counter leg spin and left-arm spin, in my opinion. It says much about his abilities that he made it appear easy on a pitch that was turning and stopping. When speaking on JioHotstar, Rayudu stated, “Never doubt his ability to hit fours or sixes! It’s about composure and understanding what is needed on the day, then executing it to perfection.”
He’s the best cricket player of all time in this format, and he comes around once in a generation. The 150 crore Indians who are fortunate enough to see his glory, along with him and his family, will have a fantastic night,” the former Indian cricket player added.
After the Ahmedabad final in 2023, he will be saved: Ambati Rayudu
Also praising KL Rahul’s batting effort was the cricketer-turned-commentator. In the final of the prestigious ODI tournament, Ambati Rayudu believed the wicketkeeper-batter would play similarly. Rahul held firm and did a fantastic job of anchoring the chase when Kohli left the pitch after he and KL Rahul had shared a 47-run partnership. With an undefeated 42* from 34 deliveries, Rahul helped India advance to the final. The victors of South Africa vs. New Zealand will face off in the top match.
“Being at number six is not something he is quite used to, so he has been under a lot of pressure. He showed great maturity in handling it, though. Both his shots and the calculated risks he made were excellent. In order to let Virat play his natural game, he took pressure. This performance, in my opinion, was a sort of atonement for him following the Ahmedabad final in 2023, which he took very seriously. This is a nice way to set things right, and hopefully he’ll knock it out again in the final,” Rayudu said.
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