"Felt like an international final" - Virat Kohli's former India mate makes huge statement during Delhi vs Railways Ranji Trophy 2024-25 match

India Men — Virat Kohli during a practice session. (Pic: Getty Images)

Team India's star batter Virat Kohli made his domestic cricket return in Delhi's ongoing Ranji Trophy 2024-25 match against Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Commenting on the comeback, former cricketer Shikhar Dhawan suggested that Kohli's presence made the domestic match feel like an international fixture.

Dhawan pointed out how fans flocked in large numbers at the stadium to catch the former India captain in action. Taking to the microblogging platform X, the 39-year-old wrote:

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It is worth mentioning that Virat Kohli reutned to the red-ball domestic tournament after a gap of over 12 years. He last played a Ranji Trophy match in Novemer 2012. According to reports, around 15,000 fans were in attendance on Day 1 of the Delhi vs Railways match.

Delhi won the toss and chose to field first. Railways were bowled out for 241. Upendra Yadav was the top performer with the bat, scoring 95 runs. For Delhi, Navdeep Saini and Sumit Mathur picked up three wickets each.

Virat Kohli was dismissed for six runs in Delhi's first innings of Ranji Trophy 2024-25 clash against Railways

Virat Kohli walked out to bat for Delhi in the morning session of Day 2. While a huge crowd gathered at the stadium, hoping to see a big knock from the legendary batter, their excitement turned into disappointment very quickly.

The right-handed batter's stay at the crease lasted for just 15 balls. He dazzled the viweres with a glorious straight drive that raced away to the fence for a four in the 28th over of the innings.

However, it was pacer Himanshu Sangwan who had the last laugh as he dismissed Kohli on the very next ball. He went for the same shot again. The ball seamed back into him and went through the big gap between the bad and pad before crashing onto the off-stump.

At the time of writing, Delhi are 241/5 in 59 overs. Skipper Ayush Badoni missed out on a well-desered century, losing his wicket at 99.