Railways employee goes back in time when he foxed Virat Kohli

A railway employee, Subhojit Chakraborty, has a fond memory of Virat Kohli patting his back after a tournament final game in Bengal back in 2009. Kohli had already made his India debut back then, on the back of a stunning World Cup win with the Indian Colts team in 2008. But he still turned up to play the finals of the P Sen Trophy final, a prestigious 50-over tournament in Bengal.

The Indian skipper played for Mohun Bagan while Subhojit turned up for the opposite team Town Club. Kohli smashed the bowlers around on route to a blistering innings of 184 which needed just 121 balls. Kohli looked set to hit a double hundred before Subhojit scalped his wicket, inducing a false shot which was pouched safely by the long on fielder.

Kohli was impressed with the skill of Subhojit

Subhojit, who bowled off-spin, returned with a five-wicket haul and scored a handy 45 runs with the bat but his contributions weren’t enough for his side to force a win. 8 years on since that game, Subhojit has stopped playing cricket and is employed with the railways at the signal controlling department.

He reminisces the word of praise Kohli had for him after he was deceived by his loopy off-spin. “We were mesmerized by Virat’s thundering batting. He was so easy on both the side. He was continuously hitting sixes even when the deliveries were being put on the off-stamp!

“Having watched it minutely I started bowling round the wicket and tried to deliver loops and keep it on the leg-middle stamp. My plan clicked and Kohli finally gave the catch at long on to Sourav Tiwari.”

Subhojit added, “Kohli appreciated my intelligent bowling after the end of the match and he patted on my back saying that I would be an effective bowler for both state and India in future.”

But it wasn’t to be for Subhojit who was in a desperate need of a full-time job to support his family. He finally got one with the railways and never looked back. His dreams were shattered by the harsh realities of life, a fate thousands of cricketers have faced during their young careers in India. He still wants to be involved with the game in some category and is planning to take up coaching.

“We were financially so poor that I was badly in need of a permanent job. But now I sometimes dream of contributing to the game by teaching spin bowling to the kids.”