Nostalgia Cam: Virat Kohli - a cut above the rest

The cricketing landscape is painted with some endearing images which saw cricketers rise above the pain and step into the middle to prove that at times nothing comes before the game.

The memorable summer of 1984 saw Malcolm Marshall played with a double fracture to left thumb at Headingley. Seven wickets for 53 runs and a one-handed boundary in the famous Blackwash that saw Windies crush the hosts 5-0.

Then against the same West Indies, Anil Kumble went out to bowl with a fractured jaw in 2002. With his face swathed with bandages, the legend bowled 14 overs and scalped the wicket of the great Brian Lara. And not very long ago, Alex Carey defied pain to bat with bandaged jaw against England in World Cup.

While international cricket is flooded with such audacious displays, franchisee cricket has not had many such moments. Why is that the case is open to interpretations – one reason could be that it is not as old as the game itself.

However, it’s not to suggest that the leagues have not had such glorious moments at all.

We don’t have to look far to find one such courageous act that left everyone stunned and the best part about it was that there was no hullabaloo about Virat Kohli playing with stitches.

Kohli had sustained a split webbing on his left hand while fielding against KKR in IPL 2016. After the game, he said: “I might need 7-8 stitches, but I don’t mind 10 stitches on my hand if we win the next two matches.” They say ‘Only the greatest of men stand up in the face of adversity,’ and the skipper did just that giving his 100% commitment. 

It seemed like the rain had played spoilsport yet again in Bengaluru, but after a bout of heavy rain, it relented. The match was limited to 15 overs a side. Virat Kohli did the unthinkable, scoring a record fourth century in a single IPL season when put in to bat by the Punjab team. When Kohli raised his bat after bringing up his century, he pointed at the stitches and showed the world exactly why he is called the King.