Picture Credit: BCCI
India registered an impressive 8-run win over England on Thursday to level the series 2-2. It was an action-packed contest between two top sides where Suryakumar Yadav and the third umpires were the talk of the town. However, there was another incident that stood out in the 4th T20I. Virat Kohli left the field and handed over the captaincy to Rohit Sharma during the final stages of a nerve wracking contest.
India's new captain, Rohit Sharma?
The incident happened when England were cruising towards the target of 186 to seal the series. Eoin Morgan's side needed 46 runs off 24 deliveries when Virat Kohli surprisingly left the field. India's vice-captain Rohit Sharma took over the leadership duties and gave the ball to Shardul Thakur. The move paid off instantly as the pacer scalped the wickets of Morgan and Stokes off consecutive deliveries, shifting the tide towards India.
However, Kohli revealed the actual reason about him leaving the field during the contest. In the post-match conference, Kohli said, "I ran for a ball and threw it and I just aggravated my quad a little bit and I didn’t want to make it into a niggle or an injury." The 32-year-old was seen limping in the dressing room during the final stages of the match.
Will Kohli miss 5th T20I?
The ongoing T20I series is evenly poised at 2-2, with the deciding contest scheduled on Saturday. With Kohli injured, the fans were really concerned if the Indian skipper will be fit for the all-important contest or not. However, Kohli brushed aside the possibilities of missing the crucial clash as he said, "We have another game in two days and I took the smart decision of going out." He confirmed that the injury is nothing serious and he should be fully fit by Saturday evening.
The decision to leave the field was to more of a precaution for King Kohli. The skipper, who smashed back-to-back half centuries in the previous two contests, had a fairly disappointing outing on Thursday. With the series at stake, the skipper would be raring to score another match-winning knock to lead his side to a hard-fought series win against No. 1 ranked team.