Virat Kohli: 'Sharing this joy is my privilege, the trophies are with my mother in Gurugram.', Why did Kohli say this after the victory?

Indian star cricketer Virat Kohli, 37, achieved another major milestone in the first ODI against New Zealand, becoming the fastest player to reach 28,000 runs across all three formats of international cricket. He achieved this feat in his 624th innings, hitting a boundary off the bowling of leg-spinner Aditya Ashok. The previous record was held by Sachin Tendulkar, who reached the mark in 644 innings.

Kohli has now also become the second-highest run-scorer after Tendulkar. Kohli played a brilliant innings of 93 runs off 91 balls, including eight fours and one six. He was also awarded the Player of the Match award for his performance.

'This journey is like a dream come true.'

After the match, Kohli reflected on his career, saying, "Honestly, if I look at my entire journey, it's nothing short of a dream come true. When I came in, I always had faith in my abilities, and I've had to work very hard to get to where I am today." He further added, "God has given me so much that I have nothing to complain about, so I only feel gratitude. I always look at my entire journey with a lot of respect and a lot of gratitude in my heart, and I feel proud of it." Kohli said, "It's a privilege for me to be able to bring so much joy and smiles to so many people."

Kohli's thoughts on strategy

Kohli played a crucial role in India's victory with his 93-run innings off 91 balls. He was also chosen as the Player of the Match for the 45th time in his career. Regarding his innings, he said, "To be honest, the way I'm playing right now, I'm not thinking about achievements at all." On the strategy, he said, "If we were batting first, I would have probably played more aggressively because there was a score on the board, so I had to play a little cautiously." I felt like I needed to hit more boundaries.' On the partnership, he said, 'I just felt that if I went hard in the first 20 balls, we could build a partnership right after Rohit's wicket fell, which would put the opposition on the back foot, and that's exactly what proved to be the difference in the match.'

Trophies with Mom

Virat Kohli gave a glimpse into his personal life, revealing that he sends all his individual awards from his nearly 18-year career in international cricket to his mother's home in Gurugram. During the post-match presentation, the former Indian captain admitted that he himself doesn't keep track of these accolades. When asked about his growing collection of 'Player of the Match' trophies, Kohli said, "To be honest, I have no idea."

He further added, "I send the trophies to my mother in Gurugram. She likes to keep them. If I look at my entire journey, it's nothing short of a dream come true for me. I've always had faith in my abilities, and I've worked very hard to get to where I am today. God has given me so much, and I have immense gratitude in my heart. I feel proud."