WATCH: Throwback to when Virat Kohli reclaimed his throne in 2022, ending 1020-day wait for a century

The period between 2019 and 2022 was the worst phase of Virat Kohli's cricket career. Not just Kohli, but millions of his fans across the globe had to hang their heads in despair, witnessing a massive decline in the form of their beloved idol. ‘The Chase Master’, ‘Run-Machine’, ‘The King of Cricket’ - perhaps all his monikers doubted whether they would be associated with him again. 

Despite scoring decently with frequent thirties and fifties, his inability to touch the triple-figure mark disappointed fans and former cricketers alike. He went 1019 days without scoring a century in any format of the game, during which there were many calls for him to be dropped from the Indian team.

For the standard he set himself, the right-hander had to score a ton to prove himself and that moment finally came in the 2022 Asia Cup. Although Kohli had shown signs of returning to form in the earlier matches, it was in the match against Afghanistan that he silenced his critics and regained his confidence.

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Kohli overcomes the odds by completing a century with a maximum

Kohli opened the innings alongside captain KL Rahul after being invited to bat first at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Glimpses of his 'vintage' knocks were visible throughout the innings as he found boundaries with powerful pull shots and elegant cover drives.

He adopted an aggressive batting approach and took his fans along for the ride. However, when he was just one hit away from breaking the century barrier, the heartbeats of millions may have stopped for a moment. Unconcerned about the dip in form, Kohli dispatched the ball into the stands and completed his century in just 53 balls. 1020 days of burden finally ended, and all he could do was smile in relief.

Here's the video of Virat Kohli's century celebration: 

THE 1,021 DROUGHT ENDED FOR VIRAT KOHLI...!!! 🐐

- On this day 2 years ago, Kohli scored his maiden T20i century to end the streak of not scoring centuries for more than two years. A comeback to remember by the King. pic.twitter.com/R49nmjrpSS

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) September 8, 2024

He went on to attack the Afghan bowlers and remained unbeaten on 122 off just 61 balls. It was his maiden T20I century and also the then-highest individual score by an Indian in this format. Afghanistan, in reply, could score only 111 and India, on the back of Kohli’s redemption knock, won by a massive 101 runs. 

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