WATCH: 15 dots and a four – Virat Kohli unleashes picture-perfect cover drive to get off the mark
Indian skipper Test Virat Kohli is back in the playing XI having missed out on the second Test match due to a back spasm. The 33-year-old is keen on getting his first Test hundred in over two years and with that ambition, he elected to bat first on an overcast day in Cape Town. India lost a couple of quick wickets after KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal negated the new ball threat.
This brought Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara to the middle, the experienced duo who have previously overseen many iconic partnerships together. However, the challenge this time was a lot more difficult, with Duanne Olivier, Marco Jansen, and Kagiso Rabada extracting a lot of bounce and seam movement.
Kohli has been accused of chasing the outside-off delivery a bit too much for his own good, and in this innings, he seemed determined to not fish outside off that easily. He negated the first fifteen deliveries of his innings with great caution, making some very good leaves outside off. Just when concerns were starting to creep in, he broke the shackles with a terrific trademark shot.
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He moved slightly towards a fifth-stump delivery from Marco Jansen, who was bowling from over the wicket (left-arm), and he calculated the risk involved in driving his overpitched ball very well. The end result was a picturesque cover-drive towards covers, one that was oozing class right from the moment it left the bat, and neither the batter nor bowlers were found moving as it raced away to the boundary.
Here’s that terrific shot from Virat Kohli that got him off the mark.
Crunch
#ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/QOmHebpiab
— Mr. Milestone (@143naari) January 11, 2022
India are chasing a historic Test series win in South Africa with the series hanging on level terms right now. Having delivered an emphatic win in Centurion, the hosts fought back at Wanderers where Dean Elgar led the contingent from the front. Things are well set for an emphatic contest at Newlands, where Kohli and Pujara ensured the visiting side lost just two wickets in the opening session of Day 1.