Virat Kohli confirmed his T20I retirement aftetr India won the T20 World Cup 2024. He won the player of the match for his brilliant knock of 76 runs that helped India post the 176-run total after opting to bat first. After announcing his retirement decision from the format, he was on a video call probably with his wife Anushka Sharma and his kids and this is when he broke down.
However, he recollected himself very quickly to put up a smile on his face while speaking to his kids. For quite a few minutes, the former India skipper was on the video call and looked extremely happy for finally being able to win the T20 World Cup trophy that eluded him for so long.
Watch the video here:
"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 and do wonders as we have seen them do in the IPL. I have no doubts that they will keep the flag waving high and take this team further from here now," Kohli said in the presentation after winning the player of the match award in the final. Opening up more, he lauded skipper Rohit Sharma as well for playing 9 T20 World Cup and stated that he deserves it more than anyone else.
"It's been a long wait for us just waiting to win an ICC tournament. It's not just me alone. You look at someone like Rohit, he's played 9 T20 World Cups and this is my sixth. He deserves it as much as anyone else in the squad. Just happy we were able to get the job done and really it's hard to explain the emotions I felt after the game.
"I knew what kind of mindset I was in. I wasn't very confident in the last few games. I wasn't feeling really good out there. But when God has to bless you with something he shows in ways that you can't imagine and that's why I said I'm grateful and humbled right now and I bow my head. It's been difficult and hence the emotions of the game went as well and the way we came back and the kind of character the guys showed it's really difficult to hold things back," Kohli added.
