Coming in third, Kohli took the onus on himself to guide India into the final of the tournament

On this day, March 4, 2014, in Dhaka, India and South Africa clashed in the semi-final round of the ICC T20 World Cup 2014. Back then, T20I did not mean 200 runs per game, and therefore South Africa’s score in the 180s was a decent target on the board. However, a young Virat Kohli took the onus on himself and guided the Men in Blue into the final of the tourney.

Here’s a recap of that day and the game.

A classic from Faf & Duminy

Batting first, South Africa struggled initially as Bhuvneshwar Kumar dismissed Quinton de Kock for six runs, and Hashim Amla followed suit after being dismissed by Ashwin for 22.

That’s when Faf du Plessis and JP Duminy played a calm and composed partnership with 58 runs coming off Plessis’s willow, whereas Duminy added 45 runs. And even when Plessis left at 115/3, followed by another cheap dismissal of AB de Villiers, who made only 10 runs, David Miller, fondly called “Killer Miller”, scored 23 runs off 12 balls at a strike rate of 191.66, helping Africa post 172 runs on the board.

Kohli’s chase

India had a decent start with 24 runs from Rohit Sharma, and Ajinkya Rahane scored 32 runs, but by 77 runs on the board, both openers had left the crease. That’s when a young Virat Kohli played a fearless game, toying with the South African bowlers and hitting left, right and centre. Kohli scored 72 runs in 44 balls at a strike rate of 163.63 and stayed until the end of the game, even though, on the other end, Yuvraj Singh got out at 17 runs and Suresh Raina scored 21.

On this day in 2014 - Virat Kohli played one of the greatest innings in history of T20 World Cup. He smashed 72*(44) vs SA in semifinal.

India chasing 173 runs, he came & scored incredible innings against likes of Steyn, Morkel, Parnell, Tahir - The King! pic.twitter.com/OsaMztBtv3

— Tanuj (@ImTanujSingh) April 4, 2023

Although Sharma, Rahane, and Raina made decent contributions, it was Kohli’s blistering pace that helped India chase down the target in 19.1 overs with five balls to spare and six wickets in hand.

Final & top run scorer

◾ 2014: Virat Kohli pic.twitter.com/nLVRz9gQM9

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) March 10, 2026

Unfortunately, in the final, India lost to Sri Lanka even though Kohli made 77 runs; India posted only 130, which was an effortless chase for the Lankans. The only positive for India was Virat’s run-scoring spree that saw him end the tournament as the highest run scorer with 319 runs in six innings, whereas second-placed Tom Cooper was miles away with 231 runs.