Virat reconnects with his home base after 12 years

It had been 12 long years since Virat Kohli last turned out for Delhi in Ranji Trophy, but watching him laugh and stroll around the Arun Jaitley Stadium and play alongside his teammates here on Tuesday, it felt as though he had never left.

- Samreen Razzaqui

NEW DELHI:

A different kind of energy accompanied Kohli to the ground in the morning. The buzz amongst the staff at the stadium and the assembled media felt different for the long-serving officials who have been in cricket administration for a few decades.

The players were supposed to assemble at 9 am and Kohli arrived on the dot, bringing with him the kind of discipline and focus the team hadn't experienced in years. The structured practice drills, the intent and intensity of the session came as a breath of fresh air for those accustomed to a mechanical routine.

For a relatively young Delhi side lying sixth in the eight-team Elite Group D, their inconsequential match against Railways has suddenly acquired a lot of focus with another day of practice left before the game starts on Thursday.