Virat Kohli Shines with Century in Vijay Hazare Trophy, Shreevats Goswami Praises His Class

In a stunning display of skill, Virat Kohli scored a century in Delhi's opening match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26, leading his team to victory against Andhra. Former teammate Shreevats Goswami praised Kohli's consistency, emphasizing his significance in ODI cricket. Kohli's performance not only helped Delhi chase down a challenging target but also marked his entry into the elite 16,000-run club in List-A cricket. Read on for a detailed match summary and insights into Kohli's remarkable form.

By Narendra Chaudhary Dec 24, 2025, 19:41 IST

Kohli's Stellar Performance in VHT 2025-26

Shreevats Goswami, a former wicketkeeper-batter for Bengal and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), expressed admiration for Virat Kohli following his impressive century in Delhi's opening match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2025-26 on Wednesday.

In the match against Andhra at the BCCI Centre of Excellence, Kohli, aged 37, scored 131 runs off 101 balls, leading Delhi to chase down a target of 299 in just 37.4 overs. Kohli's recent form in 50-over cricket has been remarkable, with three centuries and two fifties in his last five matches, including two centuries and a fifty during the ODI series against South Africa. This resurgence follows a challenging period where he recorded two consecutive ducks in a three-match ODI series in Australia last October.

Goswami's Praise for Kohli

On social media platform X, Goswami emphasized Kohli's consistency and skill, stating that he epitomizes ODI cricket. He remarked, "After two ducks in Australia, many thought Virat Kohli's time was up, but that's the brilliance of this player. In his last five 50-over matches, he scored 74*, 135, 102, 65*, and 131. You can never count him out. I've said it before and will say it again: ODI cricket = Virat Kohli."

Match Summary: Delhi vs Andhra

In the VHT match, Delhi won the toss and chose to field first. Andhra's Ricky Bhui scored a century (122 runs off 105 balls, including 11 fours and seven sixes), helping his team reach 298/8 in 50 overs. India's promising all-rounder and captain, Nitish Kumar Reddy, contributed 23 runs off 21 balls, hitting one four and one six. For Delhi, pacers Simarjeet Singh (5 wickets for 54 runs) and Prince Yadav (3 wickets for 50 runs) were the standout bowlers.

Despite an early loss of Arpit Rana, a solid partnership of 113 runs between Priyansh Arya (74 runs off 44 balls, with seven fours and five sixes) and Kohli set a strong foundation for Delhi. Kohli's partnership with Nitish Rana (77 runs off 55 balls, with nine fours and two sixes) was crucial, ending with Kohli's dismissal for 131 runs off 101 balls, featuring 14 fours and three sixes. Delhi ultimately secured victory by four wickets in 37.4 overs.

Kohli Joins Elite List-A Cricket Club

With this performance, Virat Kohli became the second Indian player, after Sachin Tendulkar (21,999 runs), to surpass 16,000 runs in List-A cricket, making him the ninth player globally to achieve this milestone. This century marked his 58th in List-A cricket, and he is now just three centuries away from surpassing Sachin's record of 60. Kohli reached this milestone in a record 330 innings, compared to Tendulkar's 391 innings.