Virat Kohli was already an icon. His Melbourne knock made him a shared national experience

Of the many prisms through which to consider Virat Kohli’s feat at Melbourne on Sunday, the most instant has to be the non-cricketing one. 

In crafting India’s stunning chase in the high-pressure Melbourne Cricket Ground clash against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup, Kohli became a shared frame of national jubilation for a billion-plus people – perhaps even its centrepiece. In a format that isn’t his strongest, he displayed a blend of temperament and sublime skill to tame the self-doubts that have haunted him for the last three years. 

More significantly, he became the roar of a celebratory national experience, something that has eluded him even as his iconic stature and feats as a modern batting great were never in doubt. 

In cricketing terms, Kohli’s knock was no less remarkable too. It was a masterclass of rebuilding, rotating strike, backing his ability to counterpace on a lively pitch and unleash his range of stroke play in the decisive phase of the match against India’s archrival Pakistan. Two other elements also shone through: his acute awareness of the state of play, and his high fitness levels in running those twos and threes in a ground like MCG where boundaries can be a long wait. 

Then, of course, were the two shots he played against Pakistan fast-bowler Rauf, shots that will be cited as gems of stroke production for many years to come. The first one – off the backfoot, six over long on, to a length ball from Rauf – was as spectacular as it was audacious. Anyone who has ever picked up a bat to play serious cricket can vouch for how tough it was, and it was even more extraordinary for a bottom-handed batter like Kohli. 

The second came from an on-side whip over fine leg to Rauf’s last ball. The Pakistani speedster, who had been bowling with fiery pace, strayed in line, a tad unsettled by what Kohli unleashed. In the context of a closely fought match, these two strokes turned the tide. 

Besides, the innings had the elements of Kohli’s old self – thriving under pressure and anchoring his immense talent to the rigours of discipline. This also entailed trusting his ability and training to straddle caution and assault in a chase after India found itself in dire straits early in the innings. In fact, much of his scoring ability in the T20 format draws on his firm technical foundation as a premier Test batter. He has adapted his long format game to the demands of the fast-paced, shorter format. That explains why he can employ proper shots to score briskly.

A few years ago, Kohli, at the height of his prowess in white-ball cricket, said he avoided such strokes in the shorter format that might corrupt his technique in the longer, purer version of the game – a format he adores. His veneration of Test cricket had the austere charm of a devotee’s asceticism. That hasn’t, by any means, restricted his focus or repertoire to one format only. The classical Kohli has only been a springboard for the eclectic Kohli, the practitioner of all-format, new-age batsmanship. 

Over the years, he has been successfully leveraging the solid base of longform rigour for a faster, more furious run in the shorter format. In the last three years, a slew of ordinary scores, a struggle with scoring rates, and a dismal IPL season early this year were enough for critics to doubt his place in the national T20 squad. Now, they’ll be quick to eat their words after Kohli’s MCG heroics on Sunday. Even if it was during the league stage of the T20 World Cup, its magnitude was ensured by the high-voltage India-Pakistan clash. 

In some ways, Kohli’s Melbourne knock may also introduce a new element in how Indians look at him. He has been India’s most valued celebrity for the last few years and that’s obviously built on the fact that millions of Indians admire him. But, as columnist and advertising professional Santosh Desai once said, while India “likes” Virat, he is yet to be “loved” like Sachin. Desai’s reasoning had something to do with what Indians saw in themselves as revealed through these iconic figures.

Desai wrote, “The larger reason is that Virat Kohli lacks a narrative. His performance works for himself and the team, and by extension for the country, but it does not reveal any cherished truths about us as a collective. It does not feed into any deep seated anxiety, nor does it help us believe in an incredible dream. Sachin Tendulkar spoke to a nation’s need to be taken seriously. He was our cherub who could take on the world effortlessly. The Sachin narrative was always about us, never about him – we owned him and willed him to succeed.”

This “missing narrative” and “collective reflection” may get its answer in Kohli’s Melbourne display. A batter recovering from a slump to craft a memorable victory is as much stuff of redemption stories as it is a tale of tenacity and excellence. It may reflect the wish for comeback stories that millions of Indians would like to come true. After all, the MCG knock put Kohli in the shared frame of national joy on the eve of Diwali – a part of national experience. It was something missing from his highly decorated, already iconic career.