Delhi vs Gujarat Live Score: Virat Kohli made his long-awaited return to the Vijay Hazare Trophy a memorable one, smashing a brilliant century to lead Delhi to a four-wicket win over Andhra in their opening Group D encounter on Wednesday. Playing his first match in the competition after a 15-year hiatus, Kohli anchored a challenging chase of 299 with a majestic 131 off 101 balls as Delhi completed the task in just 37.4 overs. He was well supported by Priyansh Arya, who hit a quick-fire 74, and Nitish Rana, whose fluent 77 ensured that Delhi stayed ahead of the required course throughout.
Kohli was in perfect touch from the moment he took guard and announced his intent with a famous straight drive from Nitish Kumar Reddy. He brought up his half-century in 39 balls and reached his 58th listed hundred in 83 deliveries. The innings was also of historical significance as Kohli became the fastest batsman to reach 16,000 List A runs in just 330 innings – breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s record.
Although Kohli was dropped twice, it did little to dampen the impact of his knock, which highlighted his rich form in the 50-over format ahead of the upcoming ODI series against New Zealand. Earlier, Ricky Bhui’s fourth century lifted Andhra to a competitive 298 for eight, while Simarjeet Singh’s five-wicket haul kept Delhi in the contest. But in the end, Delhi had the ‘master of the chase’ on their side – and that made all the difference.
