In February–March 2008, Kohli captained the victorious Indian
team at the 2008 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup held
in Malaysia. Batting at number 3, he scored 235 runs in 6 matches at
an average of 47 and finished as the tournament's third-highest run-
getter and one of the three batsmen to score a hundred in the
tournament.[55] His century (100 runs from 74 balls) against
the West Indies Under-19s in the group stage, which was called "the
innings of the tournament" by ESPNcricinfo,[56] gave India a 50-run
victory and earned Kohli the man of the match. Kohli picked up a
leg injury during the match, but recovered in time to play the
quarter-final match against England Under-19s.[57] He was
instrumental in India's three-wicket semi-final win over New
Zealand Under-19s in which he took 2/27 and scored 43 in the tense
run-chase and was awarded the man of the match. [58] He scored 19
against South Africa Under-19s in the final which India won by 12
runs (D/L method). ESPNcricinfo commended him for making
several tactical bowling changes during the tournament.[56]
Following the Under-19 World Cup, Kohli was bought by the Indian
Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore for $30,000
on a youth contract.[59] In June 2008, Kohli and his Under-19
teammates Pradeep Sangwan and Tanmay Srivastava were
awarded the Border-Gavaskar scholarship. The scholarship allowed
the three players to train for six weeks at Cricket Australia's Centre
of Excellence in Brisbane.[55] In July 2008, he was included in India's
30-man probable squad for the ICC Champions Trophy which was
to be held in Pakistan in September 2008.[60] He was also picked in
the India Emerging Players squad for the four-team Emerging
Players Tournament in Australia. He was in fine form in that
tournament and scored 206 runs in six matches at an average of
41.20.[61]
International career
Early years
In August 2008, Kohli was included in the Indian ODI squad
for tour of Sri Lanka and the Champions Trophy in Pakistan. Prior
to the Sri Lankan tour, Kohli had played only eight List A matches,
[62]
and his selection was called a "surprise call-up". [63] During the
Sri Lankan tour, as both first-choice openers Sachin
Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag were injured, Kohli batted as a
makeshift opener throughout the series. He made his international
debut, at the age of 19, in the first ODI of the tour and was
dismissed for 12.[64] He made his first ODI half century, a score of
54, in the fourth match which helped India win the series. [64] He had
scores of 37, 25 and 31 in the other three matches. [64] India won the
series 3–2 which was India's first ODI series win against Sri
Lanka in Sri Lanka.
After the Champions Trophy was postponed to 2009, Kohli was
picked as a replacement for the injured Shikhar Dhawan in
the India A squad for the unofficial Tests against Australia A in
September 2008.[65] He batted only once in the two-match series, and
scored 49 in that innings.[66] Later that month in September 2008, he
played for Delhi in the Nissar Trophy against SNGPL (winners
of Quaid-i-Azam Trophy from Pakistan) and top-scored for Delhi in
both innings, with 52 and 197.[67] The match was drawn but SNGPL
won the trophy on first-innings lead.[68] In October 2008, Kohli
played for Indian Board President's XI in a four-day tour match
against Australia. He made 105 and 16* in that match against a
bowling line-up consisting of Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Mitchell
Johnson, Peter Siddle and Jason Krejza.[69]
Kohli was included in the squad for the home ODI series
against England in November 2008 but was not given a chance to
play, due to the inclusion of Tendulkar and Sehwag in the team.
[70]
In December 2008, Kohli was given a Grade D contract in the
annual BCCI contracts list which entitled him to receive ₹1.5
million (equivalent to ₹3.4 million or US$47,000 in 2019).[71] He was
then dropped from the squad for the five-match ODI series in Sri
Lanka against Sri Lanka in January 2009.
Kohli was selected in the four-team Emerging Players Tournament
in July–August 2009 held in Australia. He opened the innings for
India Emerging Players in that tournament and finished as the
leading run-getter with 398 runs from seven matches at an average
of 66.33.[72] He scored 104 off 102 balls in the final against South
Africa Emerging Players at Brisbane to help his team win the match
by 17 runs and clinch the title.[73] At the conclusion of the
tournament, Kris Srikkanth, the chairman of the national selection
committee, was impressed with Kohli and remarked "I must say,
opener Virat Kohli was outstanding. Some of the shots he played
spoke about his ability."[74] Kohli has called this tournament as the
"turning point" of his career.[75]
