Former Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Hafeez made a controversial statement about the 2023 ODI Cricket World Cup. Hafeez claimed that during the India vs South Africa match, Virat Kohli intentionally slowed down his batting to reach his century.

Kohli was at 97 runs off 115 balls in the 47th over but delayed completing his century by 4 balls to equal Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI centuries. Hafeez said that personal records should be removed from cricket, criticizing Kohli for being ‘selfish’ in pursuit of his milestone.

Mohammad Hafeez stated that players should focus on playing according to the game’s needs rather than chasing personal records. He questioned why a player would hesitate to play aggressively after reaching 90 runs if they can do so after scoring a century. Hafeez emphasized that players should adapt their game based on the situation, whether they are starting their innings or nearing a milestone like 99 runs.

Hafeez added, “I recall during the same tournament, KL Rahul hit a decisive shot over cover in the match against Australia. Instead of celebrating the team’s victory, he was disappointed because he didn’t reach his century. This, to me, is selfishness. It’s similar to what happened with Virat Kohli, who prioritized completing his century against South Africa over helping the team.”

In the match between India and South Africa that Mohammad Hafeez mentioned, India batted first and scored 326 runs. Virat Kohli remained not out with 101 runs. When South Africa began their innings, Ravindra Jadeja dominated with a 5-wicket haul. Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammad Shami each took two wickets, while Mohammad Siraj claimed one. South Africa’s batting collapsed, and they were all out for just 83 runs. As a result, India won the match convincingly by 243 runs.

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