The son of the soil Virat Kohli is returning to his hometown Delhi to play a World Cup match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. 12 years ago, when he was a newbie playing his first World Cup in 2011, Kohli didn't have a great outing in the capitals scoring just 12 runs against Netherlands in India's only match in Delhi. But now 12 years later, he is older, more mature and one of the greatest batters in the world.
Kohli began his campaign in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 with a confidence-boosting 85-run knock against Australia. And, it is not the number of runs but how those runs came from the situation that the Indian team found itself in, that matters more. Kohli forged a 165-run stand alongside KL Rahul to help India get a win in the tournament opener against the five-time champions.
After the win both Rahul and Kohli sat down for a chat for bcci.tv and the former asked the batting maestro about returning to Delhi and his feelings about having a stand in his name. "It's a homecoming for you, we are going to Delhi. I'm sure it's a very special feeling for you, you have grown up there and now you have a pavilion named after you so what's the feeling that you are going through?" Rahul asked.
"The memories are always fresh in your mind when you go back into those moments, you can still feel it because that is where everything started, that is where the selectors for the first time and you got an opportunity. So it's always special to go back and play at the Arun Jaitley Stadium now," Kohli said.
"It's a bit awkward for me, playing in front of the pavilion named after me. Honestly, I don't like to talk about it a lot because it is a very awkward feeling but I just feel very grateful when I go back and see all the things that are present now and from where I started," Kohli further added.
India will take on Afghanistan in their second game on Wednesday, October 11 in the capital and hope to be 2-0 before going into the high-octane clash against Pakistan on the weekend.
