IND vs NZ 2026: ‘You don’t contain the greats, they have their way’ – Kyle Jamieson on Virat Kohli show in Vadodara ODI

Kyle Jamieson credited Virat Kohli‘s class after he played a match-defining knock in the first ODI of the series between India and New Zealand  on January 11. Kohli registered 93 off 91 in an innings which comprised eight fours and a six.

Jamieson, who has also been Kohli’s teammate at Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2021, admitted to Kohli playing at a significantly superior level as compared to his peers. He also acknowledged that oppositions have to be on their toes whenever Kohli comes out to bat.

“It’s hard to say from an opposition point of view whether this is the best version of him or not – he’s been pretty good for a long time, right? You feel every time you come up against him, you’ve got to be at your absolute best to even compete. He’s on a different level, he plays the game on a different level to most cricketers, (and) he looked pretty good for the most part,” stated Jamieson, as quoted by India Today.

Jamieson conceded that he relished watching Kohli bat and praised the manner in which the 37-year-old batter batted through the middle phase of the chase. 

“We will just have to try and come up with some plans to try and contain him, but (then) you don’t contain the greats, they have their way a little bit, so just enjoyed watching him play for sure. He (Kohli) controlled the tempo through the middle and set the innings up for his team,” he added.

India won the match by four wickets and six deliveries to spare. Kohli was the top-scorer across both teams, and was adjudged as the Player of the Match for the 45th time in ODIs, only behind Sanath Jayasuriya and Sachin Tendulkar. The two teams will play the second and third ODI in Rajkot and Indore, respectively.