New Zealand batter Daryl Mitchell shared a heartfelt moment of admiration after receiving a signed jersey from India’s batting icon Virat Kohli, following the conclusion of the recently finished India vs New Zealand ODI series. The gesture came just minutes after New Zealand defeated India by 41 runs in the third ODI, sealing the three-match series 2–1.

Mitchell maintained his excellent performance during the series while showing great respect for Kohli because he considered the jersey to be a valuable item that he would keep for life. “It’ll definitely be framed somewhere in the office for many years to come. I’ve got so much respect for Virat for how he plays the game, how he does it day in, day out for almost two decades now,” Mitchell told Hindustan Times. He admitted to being inspired by the Indian superstar while he described Kohli's batting style and his general approach toward playing cricket.

Mitchell delivered an exceptional performance during the match. He tormented the Indian bowling attack with two centuries in the series and played a pivotal role in the decider, scoring a commanding 137 off 131 balls to help New Zealand post a daunting total of 337 runs. His consistency and composure earned him the Player of the Series award, having amassed 352 runs at a staggering average of 176.

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Kohli’s lone century, heartfelt gesture cap off historic New Zealand series win

The statement needs to be rephrased with simpler language and more complex sentence structures which will maintain the same word count and HTML elements. The Indian cricket team relied on Kohli for their third consecutive test match. He scored his 54th ODI century by reaching 124 runs from 108 balls to chase a difficult target. India lost the match because their players kept getting out while the opposing team succeeded in taking all their wickets to finish the game at 296 runs.

The post-match scenes, however, captured the spirit of the game. Kohli walked across to the New Zealand camp, handed Mitchell his signed jersey, and shared a warm embrace - an act that highlighted mutual respect beyond the fierce on-field rivalry.

New Zealand’s series victory marked a historic achievement because it became their first-ever ODI series win on Indian territory. The match result proved difficult for the home team to accept but Kohli's act of goodwill toward Mitchell showed them the proper way to conduct themselves in international cricket.