Follow UsVirat Kohli endured a forgettable return to international cricket, registering a duck in his first outing since March. Playing the opening ODI against Australia in Perth on October 19 (Sunday), the superstar batter from Delhi - who now resides in London - faced eight deliveries without opening his account.
Kohli looked uncomfortable throughout his brief stay before attempting an expansive drive against Mitchell Starc, only to edge the ball to backward point. It was his first duck in 30 ODI innings on Australian soil and the second slowest of his ODI career, after a nine-ball zero against England in Lucknow in 2023.
The conditions were far from ideal for batting, and Kohli wasn’t alone in his struggles. On a rain-hit, seamer-friendly pitch, India hobbled to 136/9 in 26 overs. Australia chased the target with ease, winning by seven wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Despite Kohli’s rare failure, Arshdeep Singh dismissed any concerns and backed the veteran to fire in the remaining games.
“Form is just a word for him. He has played more than 300 ODIs for India. He knows how to get going. It’s a blessing to share the dressing room with him. Going forward in the series, I feel there will be a lot of runs for him. Talking about this format, he has mastered it. I don’t know how he feels about it personally, maybe I will ask him and let you know at the next press conference,” said Arshdeep, as quoted by Hindustan Times.
For India, only KL Rahul (38 off 31) and Axar Patel (31 off 38) showed some resistance. Arshdeep felt scoring was possible with application, but the stop-start nature of the game complicated matters. “It was a good wicket if you spent some time on it. We saw the partnership between KL and Axar,” he said.
“The runs were coming. But it was important to spend time on the wicket. But the start and stop was happening. So it's difficult to keep the concentration for the batter. And the credit also goes to them. They bowled from a good area. They got a lot of help from the wicket. And where the credit is due, they should also go. They have bowled well.”
The series now moves to Adelaide, where the second ODI will be played on October 23 (Thursday).