New Delhi: The return of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to the Vijay Hazare Trophy is generating significant attention as the 50-over tournament is set to commence on December 24. Both players have been selected for their respective state squads for the first two rounds of the tournament during a three-week hiatus in international cricket.
Kohli is set to play for the Delhi team in their opening match against Andhra, which has been moved from the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru to the Centre of Excellence. Rishabh Pant will captain the squad, which also includes Ishant Sharma and Navdeep Saini for the opening two matches.
When did Kohli last participate in the Vijay Hazare Trophy?
Kohli will make his return to the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time in 15 years, having last played in the tournament during the 2009/10 season. His most recent appearance came in February 2010 against Services.
BCCI President Manhas was Kohli’s teammate during that match
A notable aspect of that previous match is that the current BCCI president, Mithun Manhas, was part of the Delhi team alongside Kohli. Manhas delivered an impressive performance in that game, scoring 148 runs off 154 balls, including 10 fours and a six. His contribution helped Delhi set a total of 311/6. Rajat Bhatia also played a pivotal role, scoring 56 runs from 72 balls. Shikhar Dhawan opened the innings, contributing 32 runs off 37 balls.
Delhi clinched victory in that game by a substantial margin of 113 runs. Pravesh Chikara excelled with the ball, taking four wickets for just 19 runs in eight overs, while Pawan Suyal, Bhatia, and Vikas Mishra each claimed two wickets.
Here is Delhi’s Playing XI from that game: Shikhar Dhawan, Aditya Jain, Mithun Manhas, Rajat Bhatia, Virat Kohli, Joginder Singh, Punit Bisht, Chetanya Nanda, Pravesh Chikara, Pawan Suyal, Vikas Mishra.
