India vs England: Virat Kohli overtakes Sourav Ganguly to become highest scoring India Test skipper on foreign shores

Virat Kohli now has 1,731 runs under his belt. While Ganguly had made 1693 runs in 28 Test matches, Kohli took just 19 Tests to achieve the milestone.

India captain Virat Kohli has been leading from the front in the ongoing Test series against England and missed out on a well-deserved century on Saturday as Adil Rashid dismissed him on 97 at Trent Bridge. But during his knock, he became the country’s highest run-getting Test skipper on foreign shores, surpassing Sourav Ganguly.

Virat Kohli walks off after being dismissed for 97 on Saturday. (REUTERS)

Ganguly had scored 1693 runs and Kohli needed 59 runs to sit atop the table and he did just that on the opening day of the third Test. Kohli now has 1,731 runs under his belt. While Ganguly had made the runs in 28 Test matches, Kohli took just 19 Tests to achieve the milestone. Mahendra Singh Dhoni is third on the list with 1591 runs from 30 games at an average of 32.46. Mohammad Azharuddin had scored 1517 runs in 27 Tests while Rahul Dravid is fifth with 1219 runs.

Down and out after losing the first two Test matches, India arrived at Trent Bridge with their backs to the wall. There was genuine fear that India’s batsmen could be rolled over by England. However, the visitors, led by skipper Kohli again, showed great resilience as a batting unit despite failures that had been gnawed at their confidence.

Kohli fell for 97 — a cruel dismissal three short of his second century of the series and 23rd overall — after leading a brilliant fightback with Ajinkya Rahane, who made 81 after being dropped on 57. Their 159-run partnership would be the launch pad if India push on and put England under pressure.