‘I was upset’: Virat Kohli reveals defeat was ‘too hard to swallow’

India’s recent success at the ICC may have ended their long trophy drought, but some World Cup defeats remain tough memories for Virat Kohli.India won back-to-back T20 World Cup titles before adding the Champions Trophy, but the heartbreak of November 19, 2023 is still fresh in the minds of die-hard cricket followers. Rohit Sharma has spoken about this defeat on several occasions.However, for Kohli, the World Cup 2019 semi-final loss to New Zealand remains an even more painful experience.

‘2019 was a shock for us’

The semi-final in Manchester stretched over two days after persistent rain interrupted New Zealand’s innings in the 47th over. The Black Caps bounced back the following day to finish on 239/8 before India lost 18 runs in the chase.The match is mostly remembered for MS Dhoni’s heartbreaking run from Martin Guptill in the 49th over.Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who took three wickets in the game, recently described the defeat as “heartbreaking”. Kohli agreed with his former India teammate and admitted he was upset by the loss.“When you play Australia in the semi-finals in 2015 you are very aware of your strengths and weaknesses and Australia are always tough. We always knew if they got a massive score it would be tough and they did. They were phenomenal.”“But 2019 was a shake-up for us. 240 … it was raining. If we had played that day, things would have been different. But the next morning, a new offense with the ball. They got the best conditions and got us on offense and relied on the hesitation we had.”“It was too hard to swallow and process. I was distraught. After that I was completely gone mentally for a couple of months,” he told JioStar ahead of India’s first ODI against the West Indies.

Kohli remembers the atmosphere of the dressing room in 2023

Kohli saw India’s run to the 2023 World Cup finals differently, describing the campaign as a “massive step forward” in terms of both talent and performance.But more than the results, he remembered the atmosphere in the squad and the way the players reacted to setbacks.“The whole World Cup was great, the environment was phenomenal. You could see the camaraderie in the team, everyone was happy to play for each other.”“Even though we lost someone like Hardik early on, we never talked about what was next, even though it was a big loss in terms of what he brings. But Shami came in and you know what he can do.”“So everyone felt it was our World Cup,” he added.

‘I feel the same about the World Cup final’

India’s campaign eventually ended with a defeat to Australia in the final in Ahmedabad, another result that Kohli found difficult to process.He likened the feeling to the flashbacks he experienced after the 2016 IPL final, which continued until Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the 2025 IPL.“Before we won the IPL in 2025, I used to have flashbacks of the 2016 final. I feel the same way about the World Cup final.“I played 54 and set myself up for a big hundred; if I got 140-150 we would have been in a great position to win that match.”“But once I kept playing, it was very hard to process for many days. And you still think about it.”

Kohli’s unfinished business at the World Cup

Despite the painful memories, Kohli does not believe his World Cup journey is over.“I never think that my business is over. As long as you’re playing, there’s always something to look forward to. And I’m looking forward to the World Cup and looking at what’s ahead.”“When the World Cup is played, when we play an ICC tournament, it has its own unique challenge because you are facing different opponents, you are playing in different venues.“So you have to prepare differently, think differently and that’s the challenge,” he said.Kohli has confirmed that the 2027 ICC tournament will be his last World Cup for India. This decision added further significance to his next campaign.“For me, this is the last World Cup where I will play for India. And that is my motivation,” he added.