India's batting maestro Virat Kohli recorded his first-ever golden duck in his T20 International career which came in the third T20I against Afghanistan at M Chinnaswamy stadium on January 17. This marked the fifth instance where Kohli hasn't scored in a T20I inning. Kohli, entering the field following the dismissal of opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, was warmly welcomed by fans at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, the home ground of his IPL team, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). However, the anticipation of the crowd quickly turned to disappointment when Kohli was caught off guard by a delivery from fast bowler Fareed Ahmad. The unexpected bounce led him to hit a weak shot to mid-off, resulting in an easy catch for Ibrahim Zadran. The 35-year-old Kohli was making a comeback in T20Is in this series, having last played in the format for India during the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. Interestingly, had Kohli scored six runs in this innings, he would have achieved the milestone of being the first Indian batsman to amass 12,000 runs in T20 cricket.
Kohli Surpasses Tendulkar in Unfortunate Record
Kohli, despite a challenging phase, has etched his name in cricket history in an unexpected way. The ex-India captain achieved a dubious distinction by recording his first-ever golden duck in T20 Internationals. This misstep in the 3rd T20I against Afghanistan led to Kohli registering his 35th duck in international cricket, surpassing the previous record held by another Indian legend. Sachin Tendulkar, known as the Master Blaster, previously held the record for the most ducks by an elite Indian batsman, with a total of 34 ducks in international cricket. Kohli's recent performance, unfortunately, led him to exceed Tendulkar's count, setting a new record in this unwanted category.
Players with the Highest Number of Ducks in International Cricket
Virat Kohli's Duck Count: Virat Kohli has been dismissed without scoring, known as a 'duck', 35 times in his career spanning 522 international matches, playing for one of Asia's leading cricket teams.
Indian with most Ducks: In Indian cricket, the record for the most ducks across all formats is held by former cricketer and pace bowler Zaheer Khan. He has been out for zero in 44 international matches. The overall record for the most ducks in international cricket is held by the legendary Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan. He has been dismissed for a duck 59 times in his international career.
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