Virat Kohli seeks blessings at Simhachalam Devasthanam temple in Vizag after India clinch ODI series against South Africa
Virat Kohli visited the Simhachalam Devasthanam temple in Vizag to offer prayers after India’s ODI series win over South Africa. While fans gathered to catch a glimpse of him during the post-series celebrations, the spiritual stance of the star batsman attracted attention.
Soon after contributing to India’s victory in the ODI series against South Africa, Virat Kohli showed off his spiritual side by seeking the blessings of Lord Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha at the Simhachalam Devasthanam Temple in Vizag. Kohli played a crucial role in India beating South Africa by 9 wickets in the third and final ODI match on Saturday.
Kohli performed impressively in the three-match series and emerged as the top run-scorer with a total of 302 runs in three innings, scoring an average of 151. He once again confirmed his long-standing excellence in the ODI format by hitting two centuries and fifties. Virat faced a difficult return to international play after his retirement from Test cricket and recorded two ducks in the first ODIs against Australia. But he has since bounced back with four consecutive scores exceeding 50 runs.
Virat Kohli at Simhachalam Devasthanam Temple in Vizag.
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 7, 2025
VIDEO | Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) visited Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha temple in Simhachalam of Andhra Pradesh.
(Source: Third Party)
(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvrpG7) pic.twitter.com/nluCvBIrXL
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 7, 2025
After scoring 135 and 102 in the first two matches, Virat played a magnificent knock of 65 runs off just 45 balls, including six fours and three sixes, as India successfully chased down the target of 271 runs in 39.1 overs. If South Africa had scored a little higher, Kohli could have secured his third consecutive century. The veteran batsman was honored as the player of the series (POTS) for his outstanding performance and was awarded the 20th player of the series in international cricket; This is the highest reward among all players.
Virat Kohli expressed his happiness with his performance and described it as his best in recent years.
“Honestly, the most satisfying thing for me in this series has been playing this way,” Kohli said at the presentation. “I don’t think I’ve played at this level for two or three years and I feel really free in my mind and the whole game is coming together beautifully. [it’s] It’s very exciting to build on it. And what I always try to do as a player is to maintain my own standards that I set for myself and play at a level where I can have an impact on the team.
“I know I can bat like that in the middle, then of course that helps the team tremendously because I can bat for long periods, I can bat according to the situation and just having confidence in myself makes me feel like any situation in the middle, I have what it takes to deal with that situation and turn it in the team’s favour.”
The Indian batsman’s upcoming assignment is set for the series against New Zealand scheduled for January 2026. The BlackCaps will visit India for three One Day Internationals (ODIs) followed by five T20 International matches. However, Virat will only participate in the ODIs that will take place in Vadodara, Rajkot and Indore as this is the only format in which the 37-year-old is currently engaged.
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