'Was my first exposure to performing in a big game': Kohli, Rohit pick their top-3 IND matches as team plays 1000th ODI
India became the first team in ODI history to feature in 1000 matches. In 999 ODIs, India won 518 matches and lost 431 times.
Two of India's senior batters - Virat Kohli and captain Rohit Sharma - picked their top three ODI matches for India as the nation played their 1000th ODI game in the series opener against West Indies on Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Rohit, who was leading Team India for the first time as a full-time ODI captain, picked the 2011 World Cup win, the 2013 Champions Trophy win and the Sachin Tendulkar's innings in the famous Sharjah game as his top three ODI matches for India.
“World Cup in 2011 has to be the best. That Sharjah game...Sachin Tendulkar's innings. ICC Champions Trophy final, honestly,” he told Star Sports ahead of the start of the first ODI.
India vs West Indies 1st ODI Live Score
India had defeated Sri Lanka at the Wankhede in the 2011 final with MS Dhoni hitting that famous six as the hosts lifted their second World Cup title. In the 2013 Champions Trophy final, India had defeated England by five runs in Birmingham, as Dhoni became the first ever captain in world cricket to lift three ICC trophies, having previously led India to 2007 World T20 win.
Talking about the famous 'Desert Storm', India had defeated Australia in the Coca-Cola Cup final by six wickets with Sachin scoring an impressive 131-ball 134.
Former India captain Kohli picked the 2011 World Cup and the Champions Trophy win in 2013 without any hesitation, and then added India's famous win against Pakistan in Bangladesh in 2012 Asia Cup where he had scored a famous 183 while chasing.
“Two are really easy to pick, the World Cup final in 2011 and the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2013 and the third will be the Asia Cup game against Pakistan in Dhaka where we were chasing a big total and I got a big score. And that was my first exposure to performing in a big game like that,” he said.
India became the first team in ODI history to feature in 1000 matches. In 999 ODIs, India won 518 matches and lost 431 times.
"It will be a historic moment as we play the 1000th ODI. I would like to congratulate all the players who have taken part in this long journey. It is an honour for me to lead the side in that game, it will be a privilege to lead the boys. Our journey has been fantastic over the years. So many players have tried to put their best foot forward, we will also try to keep raising the bar," said Rohit in a video posted on BCCI.TV.
