'Character Is Not Made In Crisis': Sidhu Reserves Ultimate Praise For Virat Kohli After Champions Trophy Heroics

India sealed a spot in the Champions Trophy semifinal with a six-wicket win over Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday. Riding on Virat Kohli 's 51st ODI century the 'Men In Blue' have maintained their dominance over their archrivals at ICC events.

Virat Kohli's Return To Form Will Be A Massive Boost For India

Virat faced severe criticism as there was a sharp dip in his form post-2023 ODI World Cup . He faltered in the Border Gavaskar Trophy as India crashed out of the World Test Championship and ahead of the Champions Trophy there were concerns regarding his longevity in the limited-over format.

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But the 36-year-old stormed back into form in style with his 82nd international century in Dubai cementing his place in cricket history forever. Lauding Virat's maverick knock, Navjot Singh Sidhu predicted the former Indian captain would play for the next 203 years and hit another 10-15 centuries.

Navjot Singh Sidhu Heaps Praise On Virat Kohli

On JioHotstar the former Indian opener said, “Character is not made in a crisis; it is exhibited. This is a man (Virat Kohli) with pedigree, with passion. And after this 100, I can say with conviction that this man is playing for the next 2 or 3 years, and he is getting another 10 or 15 hundreds. That, you take it from me. Because, you see, the ultimate litmus test for anyone is how he goes through the adverse times, how he embraces adversity. The last six months, there has been so much going on that he chose his moment. When he scored runs against Pakistan, people are not going to forget it for 10 years.'

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Virat also became the fastest batter to accumulate 14000 ODI runs during his glorious knock against Pakistan. Virat played a stellar knock in the T20 World Cup final against South Africa and if the 'Men In Blue' are to repeat their historic feat he needs to take centre stage this time around. Virat's ability in ODI hasn't diminished a bit as he rolled back the years with some extraordinary shots all over the ground.

Sidhu further added, “Look, when you assess Virat Kohli, what is his trademark? If I look at Sachin Tendulkar, it was always the back-foot punch that he would give. Look at Gavaskar, the straight drive. When you look at Virat Kohli, it’s the cover drive. And when he gets his head on top of the ball and he’s cover driving beautifully, you know he’s back."

India will now face New Zealand in their last Champions Trophy group-stage match in Dubai on Sunday.