‘Confused Virat Kohli said it won’t look nice if I deny singles for 100’: KL Rahul

Virat Kohli registered his 48th ODI century during India’s ICC World Cup 2023 game against Bangladesh in Pune on Thursday night (October 19).

With India needing 19 runs from 66 balls to win, Kohli too needed the same number of runs to reach his century. Batting on 81, Kohli moved to 85 with a boundary and later refused to run at least five singles.

India needed just two runs to win and Kohli was on 97. He hit a match-winning six to notch up his hundred.

After the match, speaking to Star Sports, Kohli’s batting partner, KL Rahul who remained unbeaten on 34, revealed that they spoke in the middle.

Rahul said Kohli did not want to score his hundred and wanted to run those singles. However, Rahul told Kohli not to miss out on the milestone.

"He (Kohli) was confused, he said it will not look too nice, not to take the single, it's still a World Cup, and it's still a big stage. 'I don't want to look like I am just trying to get the milestone'," Rahul said.

"But I said, I mean it is not won but still I think we'll win quite easily, so if you can get to the milestone why not, you must try. And he did that in the end. I wasn't going to run the singles anyway," he added.

There was also a moment in the match when Kohli, on 97, received a bit of help from on-field umpire Richard Kettleborough as he clearly did not signal a legside wide. There was a talk on social media about even the umpire “wanting” to see a Kohli hundred.

Bangladesh stand-in captain Najmul Hossain Shanto said the team had no intention to deny Kohli a hundred and spinner Nasum Ahmed did not deliberately bowl down the legside.

“No, no. There was no such plan. It was a normal plan. No bowler had the intention to bowl a wide ball. We tried to play a proper game. It was not intentional,” Shanto said.