Virat Kohli congratulates Yuvraj Singh on reaching 300 ODIs

With India set to face Bangladesh in the second semi-finals of the Champions Trophy, it will be a match to remember particularly for Yuvraj Singh who will be playing his 300th ODI. Having made his ODI debut in 2000, in the same tournament, Yuvraj has been the go-to man for the team over the last 17 years, overcoming his way through injuries, illness and form several times.

Skipper Virat Kohli, in the press conference ahead of the encounter, said, he has proved to be one of the biggest match winners and has performed when it has mattered the most. The milestone for the 35-year-old all-rounder is another reminder of his long journey over the years. Yuvraj is only the 5th batsman after Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Mohammad Azharrudin, and Sourav Ganguly in the list of cricketers to have played 300 ODIs for India.

In the game against Pakistan, a match-winning partnership between Kohli and Yuvraj proved to be the most vital reason for the colossal target and win. Yuvi’s 53 off 32 saw him win the Man of the Match. While Kohli remained unbeaten on 81, he had a relatively subtle start where he had struggled. He accelerated when Yuvraj joined him at the crease and the skipper owed most of his success to his partner, where he himself felt like a “club batter infront of Yuvi.”

Match winner

“His contribution to Indian cricket has been outstanding. He’s been a total match winner for India and has won a lot of matches and a lot of big tournaments and big series. This is just a testimony to the kind of talent he possesses and one obviously needs to have all those things in place to play 300 ODIs for India,” the skipper said about Yuvraj.

“I congratulate him and wish him all the very best and hope he can play a lot more for us and get in those match winning performances all over again. I hope tomorrow is a special one for him,” he concluded.

Though India topped the group with 4 points, Bangladesh will be inspired to make the day count as this is for the first time that the side will feature in the semi-final of an ICC event on June 15.