Former India skipper Virat Kohli is set to make his return to the Asia Cup (ODIs) after a long gap of nine years, having last played in the 2014 edition of the tournament which was organised in Bangladesh. The continental tournament was last played in the ODI format back in 2018 in the UAE when Virat was still captain of the time but had not participated to manage his workload.
Rohit Sharma had led the team successfully during the 2018 edition as India clinched their record-seventh title. However, Virat did feature in the tournament during the 2016 and 2022 editions but the format adopted was T20I and not 50-overs.
Virat led the team in the 2014 edition of the tournament and his last game of that season was when India defeated Afghanistan by eight wickets in Mirpur, Dhaka. Virat finished that season as India's second-leading run-getter behind Shikhar Dhawan. The right-handed batter aggregated 189 runs in four games at an average of 63.00 and scored a century at a strike rate of 102.71.
Virat's return to the marquee event holds plenty of significance both for him and for India. With the ODI World Cup approaching fast, Virat would love to remain at his fluent best and the Asia Cup can go a long way in ensuring the same. India will kickstart their campaign with a high-voltage clash against arch-rivals Pakistan at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on September 2.
The Delhi-born has amassed a total of 613 runs in the Asia Cup (ODIs) in 11 games at an average of 61.30 and a strike rate of 97.14 including three centuries and one half-century. He is 12th on the list of batters who have accumulated the most runs in the history of the tournament (ODIs) and might register a rise on the list in the upcoming edition. The tournament also might see the 34-year-old reach the 13000-run mark in ODIs as he is 102 runs shy of the same.
