Follow Us
Virat Kohli has made much much-awaited comeback in the Ranji Trophy match to play for his home team Delhi versus Railways. This last group stage match for Delhi will commence on 30 Jan 2025 at Arun Jaitley Stadium. The debates around King Kohli’s appearance in domestic cricket were making rounds until he was present in the stadium for practice time. It’s been more than a decade since Kohli played his last Ranji match in 2012 after his debut in the Delhi team in 2006 on the same ground. As an international star batter, he is going to complete a full circle as his cricketing journey from first-class cricket to international games is incredible.
Kohli will be in the Delhi squad for the Ranji Trophy, but not as a captain as according to the sources, he has considered focusing on this batting. He will be playing in Ranji under the leadership of Ayush Badoni. Kohli had led the Delhi team in 2013 as part of the Challenger Trophy tournament. Like international cricket, Virat has fantastic records in Ranji which propelled him to the trajectory of international clashes. Let’s look at Virat’s records in Ranji.
Virat Kohli’s First Class Cricket Records in Ranji Trophy
Virat Kohli batted against Tamil Nadu in his first Ranji match in 2006. Since then he has been on the field in a total of 23 Ranji matches. In 36 innings, he culminated his time on the pitch with five brilliant centuries adding 1574 runs for his Delhi team. Although in the debut match, he contributed just ten runs, his later innings compensated. During this golden time when this run machine was getting ready to play international matches for India, he kept drawing the attention of the selectors with his highest score in a draw in Ranji match 173 against Bengal in 2009 at Feroz Shah Kotla. With five half-centuries, he had summed up his Ranji career at a phenomenal average of 50.77.
| Matches | Innings | Runs | Best Score | Avg | 100s | 50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 36 | 1574 | 173 | 50.77 | 5 | 5 |
Kohli appeared against the team of Uttar Pradesh in his previous Ranji match which was played in Ghaziabad. The bowling side restricted him from a half-century as Indian swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar took his wickets in both innings. The best time unfolded for him in 2009 as he blasted 374 runs in just 3 matches with an amazing average of about 93 along with a century. Let’s look at the year-on-year breakdown of records Virat Kohli scripted with his bat in the Ranji Trophy.
Virat Kohli kicks off his preparations for Delhi's upcoming Ranji Trophy match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium! 👑 🏏
— Fantasy Khiladi (@_fantasykhiladi) January 28, 2025
📷: PTI#ViratKohli #Cricket #RanjiTrophy #KingKohli #Delhi #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/d9Gn433u9j
Virat Kohli’s Runs in Ranji Trophy
| Season | Matches | Runs | Avg | 100s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-07 | 6 | 257 | 36.71 | 0 |
| 2007-08 | 5 | 373 | 53.28 | 2 |
| 2008-09 | 4 | 174 | 34.8 | 0 |
| 2009-10 | 3 | 374 | 93.5 | 1 |
| 2010-11 | 4 | 339 | 56.5 | 2 |
| 2012-13 | 1 | 57 | 28.5 | 0 |
| Total | 23 | 1574 | 50.77 | 5 |
Virat Kohli’s Centuries in Ranji Trophy
In previous years, the speculations were high about Virat’s inclusion in the Ranji team of Delhi. However, the international matches occupied him including other players such as Rishabh Pant, and Rohit Sharma. Though King Kohli is finally playing for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy, everyone is anticipating whether he will score a ton this time as well. In his previous encounters in Ranji matches, he ran to one hundred in 2009 and two centuries in 2007 and 2010. Every time he faced a different team which made him a versatile cricketer.
| Team | Score | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Rajasthan | 106 | 2007 |
| Karnataka | 169 | 2007 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 145 | 2009 |
| Bengal | 173 | 2010 |
| Tamil Nadu | 139 | 2010 |
Virat Kohli is one of those rare batsmen who have cemented their position in the team while successfully chasing big totals without a brink of pressure. In his captaincy, the test team of India claimed 1st rank. He stresses the extreme importance of extra efforts for fitness and net practice. He rose to fame after the Indian team representing the Under-19 World Cup in 2008 won in his captaincy. The epicenter of all these moments has been Kohli’s consistency in the Ranji Trophy. Once again, all eyes are on him to place a full stop on all questions raised against him being out of form.
The whole year remains packed with high-energy cricket contests which suppresses the participation of seasoned players including Virat Kohli from domestic cricket. The initiative to include King Kohli in the Ranji Trophy is a step taken to improve his performance for upcoming big cricket tournaments.
