Kohli is one of the two players in Asia Cup history to script a century in the T20 format
The Asia Cup is back, with several new faces competing against
each other for their respective countries. Teams also comprise a number of old faces, but unfortunately, from India, veterans like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will not feature in this year’s edition, given that they retired from the T20 format, and this year, the Asia Cup is being played in the T20 format.
Given Virat Kohli had an impressive career in the tourney, in this listicle, we have listed his five best innings in the Asia Cup across formats.
First century in nearly three years
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In 2022, Virat Kohli scored 122 runs against Afghanistan in the T20 format of the tourney. It was his first century after a lean patch of nearly three years. Not to forget, it was also his 71st international century and his only century ever scored in the T20 international format despite playing 125 games. Since 2016, only two players have managed a century in the T20 format of the tournament, and Virat Kohli is one of them.
Highest individual score
Virat Kohli holds the record for scoring the highest individual score in Asia Cup history. Getting a century against arch-rival PAK is always special, and a young Kohli did so in 2012 in Dhaka. PAK had posted a mammoth target of 329 runs, thanks to centuries by Mohammad Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed. In response, Virat Kohli scored 183, losing his wicket when India reached 318/4. He missed a 200 by 17 runs but did the job for India.
Two centuries in 2012
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2012 saw Kohli produce two dominant centuries. Apart from scoring the 183 against PAK, which often steals the limelight, Kohli produced a masterclass against a strong Sri Lankan side. In the second match of the tournament, he scripted a 205-run partnership with Gautam Gambhir while scoring 108 runs in 120 balls. His century and Gambhir’s grit helped India post a target of 304 runs. In response, Sri Lanka only managed 254 runs, and India won the game by 50 runs.
Special thing for 122
It seems Virat Kohli had a special thing for ‘122’, scoring 122 runs in the Asia Cup on multiple occasions. In 2023, Virat Kohli scored another 122, but this time against PAK off merely 94 deliveries. The match also witnessed the class of KL Rahul, who added 111 runs. Together, the two batters helped India post a target of 356 runs in Colombo. What happened next was humiliating for PAK, as they were bundled for merely 128 runs by the Indian bowling line-up.
Toying with Bangladesh
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In 2014, Virat Kohli displayed another impressive performance against Bangladesh in Fatullah. Batting first, Bangladesh had scored 279 runs in 50 overs at the expense of seven wickets. India needed only 49 overs at the expense of four wickets, thanks to Virat Kohli, who toyed with the Bangladesh bowling line-up and scored 136 runs off 122 balls.
