Young man practicing in a cricket academy in the city. |Picture source: Special arrangement
When young Virat Kohli announced his arrival in the world of cricket, there were 35-innings comedy appearances in the 2011 World Cup final, Mithun Manoj, 18, a member of the Ernakulam area team under the age of 19, just a kid.
Over the years, with his passion for games, Mithun has become not only a cricket fan, but also a self-deprecated admirer of Kohli. So his melancholy swept over him when his idol announced his retirement from Monday’s longer version of the game.
For him, there is no other worthy successor, Sachin Tendulkar, who is nearly cultivated. As the cricketer himself, he looked at Kohli’s many qualities in awe. “He redefined the importance of fitness in the game. Many of us young people tried to fulfill his fitness standards, although it wasn’t easy. His batting skills were another thing I dreamed of,” said Eloor’s Almighty.
Sanjan S. Prabhu, 20, expects the Indian test team to miss out on Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s experience, who announced his retirement last week. He can’t remember Kohli’s fierce hero against his slam dunk hero in the shortest Twenty20 cricket match. “He played Test cricket the way it demanded, in all its beauty. The fearless attitude he took to the ground almost always guaranteed domination of the opposition and brought positive results. My defining Kohli memories are his cover drives and his celebrations when he reached personal milestones or when the team won,” said the wicketkeeper-batsman, who had represented Ernakulam district in the Under-19 and Under-16 age groups.
A. Bharath, a 17-year-old all-around player, believes Kohli can wait until the team determines a valuable player to replace him in the middle order before hanging up the boots. He believes that Kohli’s aggressive captain won India’s first Test series on Australian Land in the 2018-19 Border-Gavaska Trophy. “He never backed off the game, which caught the Australian off guard. His idea was to solve any given moment, which is the cricketer I want,” he said.
Prashanth Suresh Babu, 42, is an enthusiastic cricket enthusiast who is still struggling with Kohli’s exports. Mr Suresh Babu believes he would have been able to compete in the upcoming England series and try to eliminate all guns. “When he was in the crease, India never quit because he had the ability to drag us back from the most unlikely situation. I believe his straight-forward six shots in Haris Rauf in 2022’s high-pressure T20 World Cup match against Pakistan,” he said.
However, Johny of Pookkattupady, 17, hit a different note. He believes that now is the right time to retire, opening up opportunities for young people to perform. “There are a few of the century he was on the last Australian Tour, Colee has been struggling with the table. Cover drive, which used to be his performance stroke has been his undoing for a while,” he said fairly calmly.
publishing – May 13, 2025 12:43 AM IST
