Kohli Reflects on India’s Heartbreak in 2019 World Cup Semi-Final

It feels like it was just yesterday that India faced a tough loss in the 2019 World Cup, getting knocked out in the semi-final by New Zealand. Even after nearly six years, those memories still sting for many fans. Virat Kohli, who was the captain of Team India at that time, recently shared his thoughts about the heartbreaking defeat.

India had a great run in the tournament, finishing first in the group stage by winning seven out of nine matches. But their journey ended in the semi-final, where they lost to New Zealand by just 18 runs. The game had to be continued on a reserve day because of rain that interrupted play after New Zealand batted first. New Zealand set a target of 240 runs for India. On the reserve day, Trent Boult played really well and disrupted India’s batting. MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja tried hard to save the game, but it didn’t work out.

Kohli described the loss as really tough, saying it was like waking up with a bad hangover. “The next morning after the semi-final, I felt lost. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, like drink coffee or even brush my teeth. It was all confusing,” he said on the RCB Podcast.

Kohli reminded everyone how rain affected the game’s momentum. He explained, “Everything was going well, but then it rained, and we had to come back the next morning in different conditions. It felt very unfair.”

Despite the pain, Kohli said it’s important to accept what happened, even if it’s hard. “You can’t just focus on your own sadness. Sometimes, you have to think maybe it was meant to be. Accepting things is difficult, but it’s necessary to keep moving forward,” he added.

This loss was tough for Kohli, as he had also experienced disappointment as a captain before, losing the 2017 Champions Trophy final against Pakistan and seeing India exit from the T20 World Cup group stage in 2021. Kohli also faced another defeat with India in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand in 2021. He stepped down as T20 captain after the 2021 World Cup and left the Test captaincy in January 2022 after losing a series to South Africa.