WATCH: Pune Crowd Goes Berserk as Virat Kohli Bowls in ODIs After 6 Years

Virat Kohli stole the show at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) as he came into bowling against Bangladesh. The men in blue suffered a major injury scare on Thursday as all-rounder Hardik seemed to be twisting his ankle while stopping a boundary on his follow-through. Though he stood up and tried getting back to his bowling mark but started to hobble in pain. It was when the Indian skipper asked Pandya to leave the field and get treated by the physios and handed the ball to Kohli.

Live India vs Bangladesh ODI World Cup Updates

The incident unfolded in the 9^th overwhen Bangladesh opener Litton Das played a shot down the line and Pandya tried to stop the ball with his right foot. But he twisted his ankle in doing so and fell on the pitch. The physio ran quickly to the ground to check on him. After a few minutes, Pandya stood up and went to the bowling mark but looked in pain and failed to continue the bowling.

Meanwhile, the Pune crowd went into a frenzy watching Kohli roll his arms. The fans welcomed the former India captain with loud cheers who conceded 2 runs off the last three balls of the over.

Reactions pour in on social media after Virat Kohli came in to bowl to finish Pandya’s over. A few IPL franchises and cricket fans took to microblogging site X, sharing interesting posts and videos. Take a look:

Kohli bowled in an ODI game after 6 six years. Back in 2017, he bowled a couple of overs in an ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo and conceded 12 runs. The ace Indian cricketer has picked 4 wickets in the 50-over format so far in 284 matches.

Left-hander Tanzid Hasan was then 40, having hooked fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah for an impressive six and stylishly driven Mohammed Siraj down the ground for four.

ICC World Cup: Schedule | Results | Points Table | Most Runs | Most Wickets

He then struck Shardul Thakur for 16 runs in three balls, two sixes — one over square leg and the other lofted over extra-cover — separated by a four driven through mid-on.

India are bidding for a fourth successive win at this World Cup, with Bangladesh having lost their last two matches after starting the tournament with a six-wicket victory over Afghanistan.

(With AFP Inputs)