Kohli, Kohli…. the chants from 90,000 fervent fans still reverberate in the ear when you step into the fabled MCG, even two years after the former Indian skipper pulled off a stunning heist against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2022.
Back then, Virat Kohli's unbeaten 82 off 53 balls helped India snatch a victory from the jaws of defeat. Now, he is back at the G, looking for another redemption act.
Kohli made a bright beginning to the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia with a second innings hundred in the Perth Test.
Since then he has hit the snooze mode, producing just 26 runs over the next four innings across the Adelaide and Brisbane Tests.
However, Kohli's travails with the bat notwithstanding, his popularity off the field has not diminished one bit, a quick tour of Melbourne Cricket Ground will make you understand that fact.
You will be greeted with Kohli's pictures at the ticket counter of the Australian Sports Museum.
Then there are images of him kissing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after securing the series win on these shores for the first time in the 2018-19 series, besides a team celebration picture after the third Test at the MCG, with the caption “Kohli's Conquerors”.
MCG tour guide David might have his personal favourite in star pacer Jasprit Bumrah, but repeatedly mentions Kohli in his chat while terming the upcoming Boxing Day Test as a “blockbuster”.
“This is the biggest Test in Australia and what can be more exciting than the India vs Australia match. I am eagerly waiting for it,” he told PTI Bhasha.
“In the first Test in Perth, Virat played a brilliant innings, which he and the Indian team needed very much. He is very popular here but we hope that his bat remains silent here,” he added.
But then he can't stop talking about Bumrah, the tormentor-in-chief of Australian batsmen.
“Bumrah is my favorite… who took nine wickets at MCG in 2018 helping India win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. In this series too, he did excellent captaincy along with excellent bowling in Perth.
“Looking at his form, he will be a trump card for India but I hope that he does not take five wickets in an innings here again,” said David.
Kohli's MCG connect is well-chronicled too.
In 2011-12, Kohli came in at No. 7, scored 11 runs and took two catches.
In 2014 he scored a 169 and shared a 262-run alliance with Ajinkya Rahane; his 54 in the second innings helped India draw the match.
In 2018, he led the side and scored an important 82 in the first innings and took important catches of Mitchell Marsh and Aaron Finch in the second essay.
Overall, Kohli has scored 316 runs, at an average of 52.66, in three Tests at the MCG, which includes a century and two half-centuries.
The 35-year-old is 133 runs behind Sachin Tendulkar (449 in 10 matches), who has scored the most runs for India at the MCG, and 53 runs behind Rahane (369 runs in six matches).
Gujarat-born Saloni is settled in Perth, and he has come to watch the Melbourne Test.
“For the first time I watched a Test from the stadium in Perth and I am very happy that Virat scored a century in that match.
“I am very excited about the remaining matches. It is going to be a very good match in Melbourne,” she said.
“I like Virat's aggression. It is fun to watch him on the field. He also takes very good catches and his fitness is unmatched,” she noted.
Australian fan Crayon Matthews said his team will have to be wary of Kohli.
“I am really excited for the Melbourne Test. Virat Kohli is an amazing player. He has played so well for India for so long.
“He will go down as one of the greatest that has ever played, not only in India but in the world. Australia will have to be cautious of him,” said Matthews.
Historically too, MCG holds pride of place in Indian cricket history. It was at the venue that India won their first Test on Australian soil during the 1977-78 tour.
India, under Bishan Singh Bedi, won that match by 222 runs, aided by Sunil Gavaskar's 118 and leg-spin maestro B S Chandrasekhar's 12-wicket haul.
Can Kohli and India add one more glorious chapter at the venue?
