Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.
Venue- Perth Stadium, Perth [December 14-18, 2018].
The English pitches in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy are facing immense criticism from the cricket fans. The reason being that the pitches are flat and batting friendly. Moreover, the pitch is so much more favorable to the batsmen that the bowlers are literally nowhere in the contest. To be honest, it has become a contest of bat versus bat instead of bat versus ball. Interestingly, due to easy batting conditions, we are witnessing multiple centuries from players. The conditions have become so serene that a half-century is considered a missed opportunity. As a result, the matches have become quite boring.
The real fun begins when the contest between bat and ball is equal or tilted towards the bowlers. After all, this is when the real skill set of a batsman is checked. A hundred in such a condition are thus remembered for the ages. One such knock that comes to my mind is Virat Kohli's 123 in the Perth Stadium against the mighty Aussies in 2018.
India was playing against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. After losing the first test at Adelaide, the Australians prepared a green surface in Perth to unleash their pace attack. Moreover, their batsmen did their job as they piled up 326 in the first innings.
In response, India was reeling at 8/2 when Captain Kohli came in the center. The game was on a knife-edge. One more wicket and the Aussies would have steamrolled us. And boy! What we witnessed next was something truly unbelievable. Captain Kohli got off his mark with an on-drive, which sent tremors around the Aussies. Everyone knew that we were in for a real contest now.
The bowlers were bowling their best deliveries. The pitch had swing, seam, and pace. However, the captain stood strong and played it all like a king. It was literally hammer and tongs. In an innings that lasted more than 6 hours, Kohli played an incredible knock of 123 in which he hit 13 boundaries and 1 six. It was truly a delight to watch. However, the moment that grabbed all the headlines was his celebration after he got his hundred. Let the Bat do the talking.
Even though India lost this test, the game will always be remembered for King Kohli's masterclass. At a time when batsmen struggled to get past 50, Kohli scored a magnificent hundred.
To watch the Innings of Virat Kohli, Click Here.
To watch Ball by Ball Highlights, Click Here.
To watch the Aussie Team reaction on Virat Kohli's 100, Click Here.
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