New Delhi. Virat Kohli's unbeaten century off 143 balls was one of the key pillars in India's emphatic 295run win over Australia in the first Test in Perth, the great Sunil Gavaskar pointed out the righthanded batsman during his brilliant innings in the second innings. Was completely at ease.
On the third day of the match at the Perth Stadium, Kohli faced a tired Australian bowling lineup, scoring his seventh Test century on Australian soil and surpassing Jack Hobbs with nine centuries in the list of most centuries among touring players in the longer format. equaled Walter Hammond in.
Kohli's unbeaten century, his 30th in Tests, came after 18 months. He hit eight fours and two sixes. “When he came to bat in the second innings his body was completely relaxed. In the first innings, due to the fact that India had lost two wickets early, he was also under pressure. In that second innings, you felt In addition to changing that stance, I think he also changed his feet, which were probably a little wider in the beginning.
“Just a little bit, maybe I'm thinking too much, but that little bit would have given him the height he wanted. Well, in Australia, on bouncy pitches, you need that edge. I got that mid -Loved the wicket boundary that he hit off Hazlewood, it was not the easiest shot because of your stance, but just playing a little bit, it was magic. This is a magical shot. Was. In the commentary, I kept saying, 'Show it again.
“Show it again,” Gavaskar told Star Sports. Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden talked about the stance adjustments made by Kohli in the second innings, such as lowering his stance and being more upright on a pitch where variable bounce was present, compared to coming off the front foot in the first innings. After being too eager for the match, where he was out on a low score. “It's a very good thing because the opposite can also be said for someone coming on tour to India and having to lower their stance. I know I've certainly done that. But being a little more upright To be able to do this means that your head position must remain above the boom so that it starts working in your favor.
“I said from the beginning that I really liked his move, batting more in line with the ball. I thought it was a good strategy. I think he likes to play that way, and we had some classic cases Have seen where he delivered the ball easily across midwicket, but you can't do that from outside the off stump, so I felt it was important to get in line.
“The other little adjustment you mentioned was being a little more upright so he could stay on top of the bounce, that was also really important. If you're getting as close to the ball as he was – I think Another thing was that maybe the ball had to be played later.
He said, “When he is not in his best form, he plays very hard by feeling the ball. He wants to feel the ball on the bat, especially on the front foot. But it seems that He gives himself a little more time and softens up a little.
Gavaskar also addressed the concern among Indian fans over Kohli's poor performance in Test matches and compared it to the era when tennis greats like Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal went without winning a title.
“It's like I said in the commentary, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, they are players who win titles. If they lose in the semifinals, people say, 'Oh, they are not in form. ' If someone else reaches the semifinals, you will say, 'Oh, what a great performance'.
“Similarly, with Virat Kohli, because everyone is used to him scoring so many centuries regularly, even when he doesn't score 100 runs, even if he is scoring 7080 runs – which a lot of The players will be very happy – people say, 'Look, they're not scoring runs.' And this is why it feels like this.
He said, “But still, Indian fans are greedy fans. They will not be happy with their idol scoring only 6070 runs. They want their idol to score centuries, and that is why there was a little discussion about this, 'Oh, he hasn't scored a century since July 2023.' July 2023 is almost a year ago.”
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Image Credit: KhasKhabar.