Former India captain Virat Kohli will take part in his 100th Test in India on March 4. As Kohli seeks to join some of the game’s legends such as Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar, only 11 cricketers have achieved this proud milestone for the country. Before the historic test against India, Punit Bisht, 35, a former Ranji Trophy teammate of Kohli, recalled that chilly morning in 2006, when the 33-year-old was still a professional The toughest day of my life.

This is the third day of the Ranji Trophy match between Delhi and Karnataka. Punitt, then 19, entered the dressing room with hopes of reinvigorating Delhi after a poor start to the first innings. But there was a deafening silence in the room. His teammate, then a 17-year-old boy, sat in the corner with tears in his eyes. Kohli lost his father who had a stroke a few hours earlier.

“To this day, I wonder how on earth he had the courage to go down. We were all stunned by his tragedy, the boy standing in the locker room ready to go out and hit the ball,” Punit recalled in an interview with PTI. He was a goalkeeper and batsman for Delhi but now plays for Meghalaya.

“Remember, his dad’s final ceremony hasn’t happened, he’s just because he doesn’t want his team to lose a batsman because we’re not in a good position,” he added.

Punit also recalled how then-Delhi captain Mithun Manhas and coach Chetan Chauhan told Virat to go home.

“Mr Chetan, if I remember correctly, he was our coach this season. Both Sir Chetan and Mithun Bhai told Virat to go home as they were not sure if it was a wise idea to put the child in a stressful situation and how to deal with it psychologically .

“Trust me, no one in the team thinks anymore that he should go back to his family and spend time grieving. But we’re talking about Virat Kohli here. It’s made of a different fabric,” he said.

Kohli ended up with 90 from 238 balls, while Punit scored 156 from 283 as the pair went on a staggering 152-game winning streak. Although Delhi failed to take the lead in the first game, the game ended in a draw.

“Virat was in a zone during that time. I think in those hours he stopped responding to grief and showed anger like never before. He made some great movies and his iconic cover drive. We rarely talk. He would say ‘Lamba khelna hai, out nahi hona hai’.”

“I didn’t even know what to say. Oftentimes a feeling came up that made me put my hand on his head and say a few words of comfort. My head said no, we have work to do, let’s focus Here. I think he made a controversial decision and missed a hundred,” Punitt said.

Complete news Source : Hindustan times