Vijay Hazare Trophy: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli ton up on domestic return, establish names in List-A record books

NEW DELHI: India’s ODI-exclusive stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma marked a memorable return to the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) with memorable centuries that re-wrote batting record books on Wednesday.

Making their highly anticipated return to one-day domestic cricket after years away, the ‘Ro-Ko’ were truly unstoppable, continuing their fine touch in the format they have mastered and proving they are not going anywhere and that the ‘Mission 2027 ODI World Cup’ is on.

Against Andhra Pradesh at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, Virat’s impeccable chase-master instincts and tempo helped Delhi chase down 299 against Andhra Pradesh. Delhi won the toss and elected to field first. A century from Ricky Bhui (122 in 105 balls, with 11 fours and seven sixes) took AP to 298/8 in 50 overs. Notably, captain and India’s emerging all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy scored 23 off 21 balls, including a four and a six.

For Delhi, pacer Simarjeet Singh (5/54) and Prince Yadav (3/50) were among top bowlers for Delhi.

While Delhi lost Arpit Rana early, a 113-run stand between Priyansh Arya (74 in 44 balls, with seven fours and five sixes) and Virat put Delhi in a steady position. Nitish Rana (77 in 55 balls, with nine fours and two sixes) had a 160-run stand with Virat, which ended with Virat being dismissed for a 101-ball 131, with 14 fours and three sixes. Skipper Rishabh Pant (5) had a poor outing, but Delhi secured the win in 37.4 overs by four wickets.

Virat also became the second Indian batter after Sachin Tendulkar (21,999 runs) to complete 16,000 List-A cricket runs and the overall ninth player to reach the milestone. Cracking his 58th List A century, he is just three tons away from overtaking Sachin’s tally of 60 List A tons. Virat is the fastest to reach the milestone in just 330 innings, as compared to 391 innings taken by Sachin.

In Mumbai’s clash against Sikkim at Jaipur, Sikkim opted to bat first but were restricted to 236/7 in 50 overs, with wicketkeeper-batter Ashish Thapa (79 in 84 balls, with eight fours) being the top scorer. In reply, Rohit cracked a brilliant 62-ball ton, staying unbeaten at 155* in just 94 balls, with 18 fours and nine sixes till the end, chasing down the target with almost 20 overs and eight wickets in hand.

Rohit also joined Australian great David Warner for joint-most 150-plus scores in List A cricket, with a total of nine each.

Both of them are playing domestic cricket to keep their reflexes and match fitness on point following an outstanding series against South Africa at home and a fine overall year in ODIs.

Virat ended as the top run-getter in the series with 302 runs at an average of 151.00 and a strike rate of over 117, with two centuries and a fifty. Rohit also scored 148 runs in three innings at an average of 48.66, with an SR of over 110 and two fifties.

The ”Ro-Ko’ ended as the top run-getters for India in ODIs this year, with Virat making 651 runs in 13 matches and innings at an average of 65.10, with three centuries and four fifties, with a best score of 135 and a SR of over 96. On the other hand, Rohit scored 650 runs in 14 innings at an average of 50.00 and a strike rate of over 100, with two centuries and four fifties and a best score of 121*. (ANI)