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Following his second successive duck at Adelaide Oval during the second ODI against Australia, star India batter Virat Kohli raised his hand, waving goodbye to fans while going back to the pavillion, fueling some speculations about his future.
After an eight-ball duck at Perth, Virat could not step up and deliver a comeback at Adelaide, where he has an exceptional record. He was trapped leg-before-wicket by pacer Xavier Bartlett for a four-ball duck. As he walked back to the pavillion, the 36-year-old batter got plenty of applause from the Aussie audience, who were all there to watch his 'Last Dance' at the venue. Virat acknowledged their applause by raising his hand, his gloves in his hand, as if saying goodbye to them. While this is likely his last match at the venue, Virat's gesture raised speculation about something bigger, suggesting that a retirement from ODIs may be around the corner after two successive ducks. https://x.com/cricketcomau/status/1981211697630134309 This year, in nine matches, Virat has played nine ODIs, scoring 275 runs in nine innings at an average of 34.37, with a century and two fifties. He played an instrumental role in India's ICC Champions Trophy win in March, scoring 218 runs in five matches at an average of 54.50, with a century against Pakistan and a majestic 84 against Australia in the semifinals. However, having not played in ODIs since then has perhaps resulted in a lack of rhythm and form, which the batter would be hoping to rectify to keep his 2027 Cricket World Cup dream alive. Coming to the match, Australia won the toss and opted to bat first. They are leading 1-0 in the series. Teams:Australia (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh(c), Travis Head, Matthew Short, Matt Renshaw, Alex Carey(w), Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Owen, Xavier Bartlett, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill(c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul(w), Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj. (ANI)
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