Virat Kohli’s stunning 2462-day streak ends after India’s horror bowling display against South Africa
Raipur witnessed a dramatic turn of events on Wednesday night (December 3) as Virat Kohli’s brilliant 102 off 93 balls failed to save India from a shocking four-wicket defeat against South Africa in the second ODI of the ongoing three-match ODI series.
Fans were left stunned as South Africa chased down the 159-run target and handed India one of their most unexpected defeats in recent years at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur. With this four-wicket victory, South Africa leveled the ongoing ODI series 1-1.
India face rare defeat in Raipur after Virat Kohli’s century
This loss included a rare and painful statistic. It was India’s first defeat in international cricket in 2462 days when Kohli scored a century. The last time this happened was on March 8, 2019, in Ranchi against Australia.
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Coincidentally, this match turned out to be MS Dhoni’s last international appearance on Indian soil. In that match, Kohli had made 123 off 95 balls, but India still failed to reach the target of 315 runs and finished with just 281 against Australia.
Kohli’s Raipur knock was his 84th international hundred, and India were in an excellent position to win the match, but this time the script reversed.
Virat Kohli’s 14 centuries ended in defeat
India have now lost 14 matches where Virat Kohli has scored a century. In ODIs alone, India suffered defeat in 8 of the 53 matches in which the former Indian captain reached triple figures. The remaining seven centuries that ended in defeat came in Test cricket.
One such unforgettable moment happened in Adelaide in December 2014, when Kohli scored a century in both Test innings but India still lost. Even though the result was disappointing, this Test match remains special on the Australian tour as it was his first match as India’s Test captain.
Comparing this state with Sachin Tendulkar, the legendary cricketer finished his career with 100 international centuries across 664 matches between 1989 and 2013. Of these, Tendulkar’s 25 centuries came in matches where India ended up losing on the international stage.
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When India lost despite Virat Kohli’s century
Meanwhile, there were rare days when Virat Kohli’s brilliance with the bat couldn’t save India from defeat. The first instance happened in 2011, when his 107 in Cardiff was not enough against England in an ODI match. A year later, in Adelaide, he fought hard with 116 runs in a long Test innings, but Australia won the match.
In 2014, Kohli made a superb 123 in Napier, followed by a memorable Test in Adelaide where he scored 115 and 141 in the same match, but India lost the match. The trend continued in 2015 in Galle with a 103. In 2016, he reached 117 in Melbourne and 106 in Canberra, but India lost both ODI matches against Australia.
The right-handed batter’s 121 runs in Mumbai against New Zealand in 2017 also ended in defeat in the ODI clash. Kohli’s run in 2018 was also disappointing for the Indian cricket team.
This run included powerful knocks of 153 in a Test match against South Africa at Centurion, 149 in a Test match against England at Birmingham, 107 in an ODI match against the West Indies at Pune and 123 in a Test match against Australia at Perth.
In 2019, India had also lost an ODI match when Kohli scored 123 runs against Australia in Ranchi. And now to Raipur, where Kohli’s 102 came in vain against South Africa.
