“If you look at someone like Virat Kohli then he has what? 26 Test hundreds and our entire team has 18... So you see there’s an obvious difference of experience,” said Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo after stumps on Day 1 of the India vs Bangladesh pink ball Test. Apart from the gap between the two sides, somewhere in that statement was hidden the invertibility of a Kohli hundred. Kohli did not disappoint. It took about 85 minutes on the first session of Day 2 for the Indian captain to complete his 27th Test hundred. He got there with a couple off Taijul Islam’s bowling in the 68th over.
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Resuming Day 2 on 59, Kohli started made his intentions clear within the first three overs. He hit two delightful fours through the leg side – the first one was off Taijul Islam’s bowling and the next came through the gap between mid-wicket and mid-on when Al Amin strayed down the pads. But the real moment of assurance came when he bludgeoned Al Amin in the third ball of the 51st over through the covers. The cover drive to Kohli is what the straight drive was to Tendulkar. The moment you see that coming off perfectly, your inward voice whispers, ‘here you go’. He replicated the same off Ebadot’s bowling a few overs later, which took him to 99. He had creamed one through in the same region on Day 1 under lights too, which even prompted Ebadot to stand and applaud.
Kohli, however, hasn’t given that ‘here you go’ moment too often this year. This was only his second hundred of the year. The other one was a mammoth 254-run effort against South Africa in Pune. The lack of hundreds, however, doesn’t mean Kohli has been out of touch. He has an average of over 70 in 2019. But for a country so used to Kohli milestones and centuries, this year has been a bit below par. On Saturday, Kohli decided to end the year with a bang.
{{/usCountry}}Kohli, however, hasn’t given that ‘here you go’ moment too often this year. This was only his second hundred of the year. The other one was a mammoth 254-run effort against South Africa in Pune. The lack of hundreds, however, doesn’t mean Kohli has been out of touch. He has an average of over 70 in 2019. But for a country so used to Kohli milestones and centuries, this year has been a bit below par. On Saturday, Kohli decided to end the year with a bang.
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After becoming the first Indian captain to go past 5000 Test runs on Friday, Kohli on Day 2, became the first batsman to score a century in Day/Night Tests in India. His largely untroubled innings was laced with 12 fours. This was Kohli’s 70th international ton and second consecutive one at Eden Gardens. He had scored a century against Sri Lanka in November 2017 too.
Riding on Kohli’s century and half-centuries from Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, India took control of the second Test. Rahane, who was started Day 2 on 23, brought up his half-century quickly, but was dismissed after he top-edged one to point off Taijul Islam.
But before that, he stitched together an important 99-run stand for the fourth wicket. This was Kohli and Rahane’s 10th fifty-plus stand in last 12 innings. India’s lead surged past the 150-run mark. They had bowled Bangladesh out for a paltry 106 on Day 1.