Adelaide, Oct 23: Batting stalwart Virat Kohli’s much-anticipated appearance at his favourite hunting around, the Adelaide Oval, ended in a disappointment on Thursday as the former India captain was dismissed for a four-ball duck in the ongoing second ODI against Australia.

After bagging a duck in the rain-hit first ODI in Perth, Kohli’s return to playing at the Adelaide Oval, where he has scored five international centuries – the most for any ground in his career – was expected to get him some runs under his belt, especially with a huge crowd of Indian fans present at the venue.

But all of that anticipation ended in the seventh over when an impressive Xavier Bartlett hit Kohli flush on the pad with a brilliant inswinger to trap him lbw. After failing to be in the line of the ball, Kohli opted to not go for the review after a brief chat with non-striker Rohit Sharma.

It was an incredible set up from Bartlett, who bowled three deliveries away outside off before getting one to nip back in and dismiss Kohli. It also marked the first time of Kohli being dismissed for consecutive ducks in ODIs.

As he walked off, the Adelaide crowd rose in a standing ovation, acknowledging the batter who has scored 976 runs at the venue – the most by any visiting player. In appreciation of the crowd giving him a standing ovation, Kohli made a gentle raise of his right hand as he walked towards the dressing room.

If this was indeed Kohli’s final outing at the iconic ground, it ended not with a flourish but with a poignant wave to fans who have witnessed some of his finest innings here.

Kohli will now have the third ODI in Sydney, set to happen on Saturday, to have some runs and sign off from the Australia tour on a high.

New Delhi, Oct 22: The Women’s Premier League (WPL) mega auction ahead of the 2026 season is set to be held in the last week of November in New Delhi, tournament sources told media on Wednesday.

Media understands that there was a toss-up between New Delhi and Goa as the WPL mega auction venue in the aforementioned window. But in the end, New Delhi emerged as the top choice as the hosts for the mega auction set to be held in the WPL for the first time.

The same has been communicated by the WPL committee to the five franchises – two-time winners Mumbai Indians, 2024 winners Royal Challengers Bengaluru, three-time runners-up Delhi Capitals, UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants.

“It is most likely during the last week of November that the WPL mega auction will happen. But nothing has been confirmed on the exact date of the auction and its expected to be finalised in some time from now. Once its done, the same will be communicated to the teams,” further said sources.

It is also understood that the auction proceedings will be completed in just one day, considering the number of teams in the competition. As per a previous intimation in October, the retention deadline is November 5, with five players to be retained per team.

Each franchise will be allowed to retain a maximum of three capped Indian players, two overseas players, and two uncapped Indian players. If a team chooses to retain five players, at least one must be an uncapped Indian player.

The auction purse has been set at rs 15 crore. Retention slabs have been defined as follows: Rs 3.5 crore for Player 1, Rs 2.5 crore for Player 2, Rs 1.75 crore for Player 3, Rs 1 crore for Player 4, and Rs 50 lakh for Player 5. The Right to Match (RTM) option will enable franchises to buy back players who were part of their 2025 WPL squads, with a cap of five RTMs per team.

Depending on the number of retained players, the corresponding deductions from the purse will be: Rs 9.25 crore for five players, Rs 8.75 crore for four, Rs 7.75 crore for three, Rs 6 crore for two, and INR 3.5 crore for one. The number of RTMs available will vary accordingly – franchises retaining fewer players will have more RTMs at their disposal. Teams using all five retentions will forfeit the RTM option entirely.

After the retention deadline, franchises will submit players who will head into the auction on November 7, while the final date for the mega auction’s player registration is November 18 and final list of players in the auction will be released on November 20.

New Delhi, Oct 22: As Virat Kohli returned to his favourite hunting ground in Adelaide for the second ODI against Australia, the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) greeted the batting stalwart with a heartfelt message on social media.

Kohli, who had retired from T20Is and Test cricket, returned to international cricket in the first ODI against Australia, seven months after the Champions Trophy victory.

For Kohli, Adelaide has been a successful hunting ground over the years. His first Test hundred came at the same venue during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy tour of 2011-12. He holds an impressive record at the ground, having scored 975 runs in just 12 international matches, the most by an Indian at this venue.

As Kohli stepped onto the field for the practice session, SACA shared a video of him entering the ground with Kohli’s previous post-match speech as a background score.

After this series, India won’t return to Australia for one-day internationals before the 2027 World Cup, meaning this series is expected to be the last time Kohli plays down under.

“One of cricket’s true icons, Virat Kohli returns to his beloved ground — training here for what may be his final appearance in international colours at Adelaide Oval,” SACA shared on X.

“It has been an honour and a privilege to welcome one of the greatest to ever grace the game over many years. Thank you, Virat, for the memories, the magic, and the moments that will live on in the hearts of South Australians and cricket fans around the world.

“You’ll always be welcome at Adelaide Oval. Don’t be a stranger, mate,” the post read.

Although the charismatic batter failed to make an impact with the bat, registering his first-ever duck on Australian soil, he will be aiming to uphold his impressive record at Adelaide in the second ODI, scheduled for Thursday.

When Kohli comes out to bat on Thursday, he will have the opportunity to surpass former skipper MS Dhoni’s record for the most runs scored by an Indian batter in the 50-over format at Adelaide Oval on October 23.

Dhoni has scored 262 runs in six games he played at Adelaide Oval, and Kohli has 244 runs in four games. He needs 19 runs to become the leading scorer at the venue in 50-over matches.