Virat Kohli Reigns Again — 302 Runs, Two Hundreds, Player of the Series as India Clinch 2–1 vs South Africa
In a series that tested patience and form, Virat Kohli delivered a response only a true champion can give: silence the critics with runs. Kohli finished as India’s highest run-getter in ODIs for 2025 with a commanding series performance against South Africa — 302 runs across three matches, including two centuries and a fifty — and walked away with the Player of the Series award.
After the award ceremony, Kohli summed up the feeling behind the numbers: “Rohit and I have played our cricket throughout. We want to do something special for the team. We’re just happy that both of us have been able to do it for so many years.”
That camaraderie between the seniors — and a supporting cast that included Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal — proved decisive as India chased 271 in under 40 overs to seal the series 2–1.
Match-by-match mastery
Kohli’s sequence of scores across the series was vintage: a hundred in the first ODI, another hundred in the second, and a composed fifty in the decider. The aggregate — 302 runs, 151.00 average, 117.05 strike rate, 2 hundreds, 1 fifty — reads like a statement on consistency and intent.
Decider: Team effort — Jaiswal, Rohit and Kohli
The series decider saw contributions from all three — youth, experience and mastery. The match-winning chase was built around:
- Yashasvi Jaiswal — 116* (121) — a maiden ODI hundred that announced his arrival in big-game moments;
- Rohit Sharma — 75 (73) — a captain’s innings under pressure, setting the chase tone;
- Virat Kohli — 65* (45) — the finishing touch, calm and clinical.
India chased down 271 in 39.5 overs to clinch the series 2–1. The emotional visuals of Rohit embracing Kohli captured the bond between two of India’s greatest white-ball servants — teammates who have repeatedly carried the team in crucial moments.
“The Emperor at the Other End” — Jaiswal’s moment
For Yashasvi Jaiswal, the series contained a memory he’ll tell for life: scoring his maiden ODI hundred with Virat Kohli standing at the non-striker’s end. Social feeds quickly picked up a line fans loved: “Jaiswal will tell his kids — the emperor himself was on the other end when I hit my maiden hundred.”
That image — a young batter reaching a milestone while learning the craft beside a legend — is the exact continuity Indian cricket needs.
Context & significance
There had been murmurs about workload management and selection choices in India’s ODI plans, with some voices suggesting younger options be tried more often. Kohli’s performance answers that debate emphatically — through runs. His form now gives the selection panel and team management a clear option: experience, hunger and outputs matter.
Beyond personal records, the series reinforces India’s top-order stability: Rohit’s reliability at the top, Jaiswal’s youth and talent, and Kohli’s class across phases. Heading toward major ICC events, having three players in such complementary form is a luxury.
What fans are saying
Social channels celebrated Kohli’s resurgence. Fans called it a return to the pre-lockdown kind of ODI dominance — centuries, high averages and match-winning finishes. Analysts lauded Kohli’s shot selection and rhythm, Rohit’s timing and leadership, and Jaiswal’s temperament under pressure.
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Looking ahead
With this series behind them, India’s batting bench looks healthier and more balanced. Rohit’s form — including a 75 in the decider — and Kohli’s back-to-back centuries create a powerful pairing going into future white-ball assignments and the road to the 2027 World Cup. For Jaiswal, the series could be a launching pad for a long international career.
Series summary
India won the series 2–1 — chase of 271 in 39.5 overs in the decider. Key individual stats:
- Virat Kohli: 302 runs, 151.00 avg, 2 hundreds, 1 fifty — Player of the Series
- Yashasvi Jaiswal: 116* (121) in the decider — maiden ODI hundred
- Rohit Sharma: 75 (73) — captain’s contribution in decider
Reporting note: Scores and figures are from the three-match ODI series between India and South Africa concluded Dec 2025.
