Virat Kohli’s highly anticipated return to domestic cricket after 12 years did not go as expected, as he managed to score only six runs for Delhi against Railways in the Ranji Trophy. Kohli was clean-bowled by Railways pacer Himanshu Sangwan, leaving the crowd in complete shock.
Kohli’s dismissal not only dampened the spirits of his supporters but also triggered a mass exit from the stands, with many fans leaving even before he had walked back to the pavilion. Following his early departure, emotions ran high on social media, with frustrated fans taking to Instagram to vent their anger.
As Sangwan had set his Instagram account to private before the match, irate fans ended up targeting an unrelated person with the same name. The individual who has 20k followers on Instagram and who had no ties to cricket, suddenly found himself bombarded with hateful messages and trolling.
Amid the confusion, the wrongly accused person was eventually forced to clear the air through his Instagram story, stating that he was not the bowler responsible for Kohli’s dismissal.
Virat Kohli aims for second chance against Railway
The 36-year-old Viurat Kohli drew massive crowds on day one of the Ranji Trophy fixture between Delhi and the Railways, given his return to the first-class competition after a decade. Fans were waiting outside the stadium since 3:00 am to watch the batting maestro in action. However, all Kohli managed was six runs by hitting a boundary before Sangwan made the right-hander's off-stump take a walk.
Despite the disappointment, Kohli’s participation in the Ranji Trophy has already sparked a renewed interest in domestic cricket, something the BCCI had hoped for when instructing senior players to return to the format.
While Kohli's first outing did not go as planned, the batter is expected to have another shot in the second innings, where he would aim to make a mark.
