Watch: Virat Kohli's Priceless Reaction After Fans Ask Him To Bowl Against Sri Lanka at Wankhede

With the Indian pace unit on a rampage, the Men in Blue thrashed Sri Lanka to secure their seventh straight victory of this ICC ODI World Cup on Thursday in Mumbai. The atmosphere was quite electric at the Wankhede Stadium as the huge crowd saw Sri Lanka getting bundled out for just 55 runs to endure a humiliating 302-run defeat.

There was a time during the Islanders’ batting when the fans at the stadium expressed their desire to see Virat Kohli roll his arms. They made their demands with loud cheers, which caught the attention of Kohli. In a video going viral, the Mumbai crowd was heard shouting, “Kohli ko bowling do. [Please allow Kohli to bowl].”

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

Virat Kohli, who was fielding at the slips at that moment, reacted to the chants in a hilarious way. He folded his arms in an apologetic gesture, seemingly asking fans not to bestow this responsibility upon him. A few minutes later, Kohli was spotted freeing his arms and showing off his run-ups. It did nothing but make the crowd more enthusiastic.

The event transpired in the 13th over when Sri Lanka had already gone down by seven wickets after scoring only 23 runs. Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Punjab Kings dropped a video on X, where a section of fans could be seen dancing to the beats of drums and calling on Kohli, “a right-arm quick bowler.”

Virat Kohli might not come to showcase his bowling prowess in the match. But the fans could witness one of the best innings of his career during India’s batting. It was not a day for Rohit Sharma, who returned to the pavilion after facing only two deliveries. That’s when Kohli arrived at the crease and joined hands with another opener Shubman Gill. The duo took time to get settled and then went hard on the Sri Lankan bowlers.

ALSO READ| It’s Like Eight to Nine Hundreds in 14 Matches’: Harbhajan Singh Hails Mohammed Shami’s Stats in ODI World Cups

Both batters, however, failed to reach their centuries. A poor shot selection from Shubman Gill ended his knock at 92 runs, while Kohli fell victim to a slower delivery a few overs later. The veteran batter struck as many as 11 boundaries during his 94-ball innings to score 88 runs. His wicket silenced the home fans, who wanted Kohli to break Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI centuries.

Following the wickets of the top-order batters, Shreyas Iyer showcased his A-game and went on to notch a crucial half-century. Riding on his 80-run knock, India posted a mammoth 357 runs on the board.