Celebrating Virat Kohli's 100th test match

[sarcastic]

Folks, It is time to celebrate the greatest test player of his generation to play for India.

Getting a test cap to play for India itself is an achievement. What a tremendous achievement to get to 100 test caps. 
It has been 10 years since Veeru (the last batsman to get there) reached the milestone of 100 tests. And now it is Kohli and we will not likely have another batsman who will be 100 test cap holder for another decade (since Rohit/Pujara/Rahane probably wont get there). 

Share the moments in Kohli's test career that you savor the most. 

Here is a list of top test innings by Kohli as explained by Harsha.

 

Edited March 3, 2022 by sarcastic

[sarcastic]

'Whole credit goes to Virat Kohli for getting us going in Test cricket' - Rohit Sharma

New Test captain also toasts contributions of Rahane, Pujara as India prepare for a proper changing of the guard

 

Quote

 

India's Test cricket is at the precipice of a proper changing of the guard. There is a new captain, and the team is about 300 caps lighter in experience. Two new batters will have to pick up spots that have been occupied more or less since 2012. The new captain, though, is in no hurry to move on from the achievements and the contributions of those making way.

 

 

When asked about Virat Kohli's 100th Test, Rohit Sharma spoke glowingly. "It has been [an] absolutely brilliant journey for him," Rohit said. "A long one. To go on and play 100 Tests, it has been a wonderful journey. He has done exceedingly well in this particular format. Changed so many things in the way the team is moving forward. It has been brilliant to watch that. It has been one hell of a ride for him. It will continue to be in the years to come. We definitely want to make it a special one for him.

 

 

"As a team I think the series we won in Australia in 2018-19 was a very good series for us. He was the captain there. As a batter, the best memory is the century in Johannesburg in 2013. On a challenging pitch, which had a lot of bounce, and all of us were playing in South Africa for the first time. And he faced Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Philander and Jacques Kallis… it was never going to be easy. The way he batted, got a century in the first and scored 90-odd in the second… it was the best knock I remember. Perth 2018 was also special but I think this beats that one."

 

 

Even when looking forward to his own upcoming stint as a captain, Rohit made it a point to acknowledge Kohli. "I am looking forward to just win games as much as possible and do the right things with the right players in the squad," Rohit said. "As a Test team we, at the moment, stand in a very good position if you look at our last five years in Test cricket. The whole credit goes to Virat himself to get us going in this particular format. What he has done with the Test team over the years was brilliant to see.

 

 

"I have to take it honestly from where he has left. The team stands in a very good position. Of course we are somewhere midway in the WTC table. But honestly I don't think we have done anything wrong in the last two or three years of Test cricket. Of course we want to improve every game that we play. That is always going to be the benchmark for ourselves moving forward."

 

 

One of Rohit's first big captaincy calls will be to find the right replacements for Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, but even there he spoke of their contribution first. "Those are big shoes to fill," Rohit said. "Never easy for the guys who come in. Even I don't know who is going to come in. You have to wait till tomorrow morning. But yeah what Pujara and Rahane have done for this team, you can't put it in words. All these years of hard work, playing 80-90-odd Tests matches, all those overseas Test victories, India getting to No. 1 in the Test format, these guys helped us throughout and played a big part in that. There is no way they are not being looked at in the future. They will definitely be part of our plans in the future. Like the selectors also said, it is just for now that we didn't consider them. There is no guarantee, nothing written about them that they will not be considered for future series."

 

 

That doesn't mean, though, that Rohit is not excited with what he is now working with. "Those guys who are going to replace Pujara and Rahane, they have done exceedingly well whenever they have got an opportunity, whether it is first-class cricket back home or India A tours or whatever limited opportunities they have got playing Test cricket," Rohit said. "I think we need to just back these guys to come good for us. At times, we need to look forward. Those guys have been waiting for a while now. Hopefully they can turn things around for us. It is just not about one or two games but I am looking at a number of years for them playing for India and doing well for us."

 

 

India's last few captains with the exception of Anil Kumble packed it in by the time they got to the age Rohit is when he is starting his captaincy. The last two-three years have been great for him, but it can be argued just 43 Test caps in such a long career is a middling return. Rohit, though, said he was not looking at any personal targets.

 

 

"What target should I set for me?" Rohit said. "My targets are set for the team. I am not thinking about myself. I am happy with 40 [Tests]. I don't have regrets. Quite a few injuries, quite a few ups and downs, but that goes on in life and in cricket. You will never get a smooth ride in cricket. The ups and downs will teach you a lot. Now I don't have personal targets that I have to do this, I have to do that. In front of me is a big job. I am just thinking we have to do well for the team."

 

[Majestic]

Top 5 best knocks of Kohli :

 

1. Adelaide 2014

2. Edgbaston 2018

3. Johannesburg 2013

4. CapeTown 2018

5. Melbourne 2014

Edited March 3, 2022 by Majestic

[Majestic]

17 minutes ago, sarcastic said:

Folks, It is time to celebrate the greatest test player of his generation to play for India.

Getting a test cap to play for India itself is an achievement. What a tremendous achievement to get to 100 test caps. 
It has been 10 years since Veeru reached the milestone of 100 tests. And now it is Kohli and we will not likely have another 100 test cap holder for another decade (since Rohit/Pujara/Rahane probably wont get there). 

Share the moments in Kohli's test career that you savor the most. 

Here is a list of top test innings by Kohli as explained by Harsha.

 

A slight correction here. Ashwin will get to 100 tests.

[Majestic]

5 minutes ago, Majestic said:

Top 5 best knocks of Kohli :

 

1. Adelaide 2014

2. Edgbaston 2018

3. Capetown 2018

4. Johannesburg 2013

5. Melbourne 2014

Adding to this, he has been by far the best Indian batsman in overseas conditions in last 10 years.

[sarcastic]

13 minutes ago, Majestic said:

A slight correction here. Ashwin will get to 100 tests.

True that. 
I should have written "batsmen" specifically there. Will edit that.

We also had Harbhajan and Ishant completing 100 test matches in the last few years.
Ishant is the only pace bowler after Kapil Dev to play 100 tests. 

[SRT100]

Kohli getting to 100 Tests, definitely cheapens its value, importance and historical significance to Indian Cricket.

 

The guy went from Batman, to the Dark Knight, and ultimately ended as the Joker.

[The Realist]

Based solely on merit he should not even be picked. Form fallen off a cliff for 3 years. Struggles to make any score thesedays. Stripped off captaincy in all formats. He is just living off his name and glories in the 2010s.

 

Not much to celebrate. 

[cricketfan28]

Hope he makes a 100.

[SRT100]

1 hour ago, Cricspin said:

Will be nice if he can get to 8000 runs during this test. He needs only 38 runs to get there.

 

However, I am not sure if he has enough gas in the tank to go on and hit that 10K test milestone. His overall numbers are good and he is still one of the great batters India has produced. 

 

His average during last 3 years is only 38 RPI. That is a long lean patch for any great batsman. If he can recover and hold moderate form for another 2-3 years then 10K is possible.

 

 

 

 

Thats how pathetic he has become, even scoring 38 runs in a match is no guarantee for him in two innings.

[sarcastic]

2 hours ago, Cricspin said:

Will be nice if he can get to 8000 runs during this test. He needs only 38 runs to get there.

 

However, I am not sure if he has enough gas in the tank to go on and hit that 10K test milestone. His overall numbers are good and he is still one of the great batters India has produced. 

 

His average during last 3 years is only 38 RPI. That is a long lean patch for any great batsman. If he can recover and hold moderate form for another 2-3 years then 10K is possible.

 

 

 

He will definitely score 10 K test runs, the only one of his generation to achieve that ultimate milestone.

Not sure, when we will get another batsman to score 10 K test runs in the newer generation given the increased presence of T20 cricket.

[Vijy]

2 hours ago, Cricspin said:

Will be nice if he can get to 8000 runs during this test. He needs only 38 runs to get there.

 

However, I am not sure if he has enough gas in the tank to go on and hit that 10K test milestone. His overall numbers are good and he is still one of the great batters India has produced. 

 

His average during last 3 years is only 38 RPI. That is a long lean patch for any great batsman. If he can recover and hold moderate form for another 2-3 years then 10K is possible.

 

 

 

I don't see him recovering. too many technical issues in the game. drive also seems to have diminished. we will see whether 100th test can spark something

[Stan AF]

Purely owing to the 3 formats and ipl, I think he will be the last indian batsman/bowler to cross this 100 test milestone.

[AuxiliA]

1 minute ago, Stan AF said:

Purely owing to the 3 formats and ipl, I think he will be the last indian batsman/bowler to cross this 100 test milestone.

 

Ashwin, he's just 16 tests away. Pant should also get there eventually if he doesn't fall off a cliff. 

[Vijy]

9 hours ago, AuxiliA said:

 

Ashwin, he's just 16 tests away. Pant should also get there eventually if he doesn't fall off a cliff. 

Pujara is also only 5 tests away. selectors are myopic enough to bring him back

[zen]

8,000 runs in 100 Tests, which is 80 runs per test … Not bad at all if you played 72% (72 tests) of those tests versus SENA teams!!

[Vijy]

12 hours ago, Cricspin said:

Cricinfo stat Article... Worth a look

 

Is Virat Kohli's Test average of 50.39 actually worth more? (espncricinfo.com)

 

 

 

 

While Kohli's average has dropped significantly, it is also important to keep in mind the fact that he has played in an era which is far more bowler-friendly than the period when some of his predecessors played. It is, therefore, only fair that each player's performances be measured against other batters who played in those matches, rather than across eras.

 

 

In the 99 Tests that Kohli has played, the other batters in the top seven positions have averaged just 33.82, which suggests that conditions were generally difficult for batting. The corresponding number in the 99 Tests that Dravid played is 39.11, which is almost 16% higher. Compare the ratios of those two averages, and there is little to choose between them: Kohli's is 1.49 times that of the other batters, while Dravid's is 1.487 times better.

 

 

 

 

 

this ratio approach was okay (although too coarse), but they should have changed criterion to 50+ tests, which counts as a long enough career. Smith has around 1.8 if I remember correctly.

[putrevus]

His technique has too many holes, I don't think he is going last longer to complete even 10k.Today dismissal again shows nothing has changed , should have forward instead of being stuck on back foot.

[Real McCoy]

He has had a good career and is worthy of playing 100 tests far better than his friend Ishant who only played that many due to Kohli's captaincy. But right now, he seems to be struggling. One can only hope that loss of the burden of captaincy will make him improve his game. Kohli looks like a serious person who maybe affected negatively by taking away the captaincy.

Kohli became better because of his single minded ability to improve and he took the team with him. But his mind is a double edged sword as he continued to hurt the team with dropping upcoming players in form because he wanted to be the alpha dog and favoritism in picking his friends and yes men despite their poor performances.

You can only wish if his mindset towards captaincy was different. With Kohli, you have to accept both the positives and negatives. Negatives get the highlight as they always do but positives also need to be mentioned here and there. With all things said, he has decent numbers with a slump in the last few years as was mentioned in this thread and we hope his batting gets better in his final years.

I was his biggest critic with his stupid antics in the field, his wife getting more publicity on the cricket front, him having too much fun when we lost a key final against our arch rivals, etc. As much as I'm pleased that Purane are gone, we need to phase out the seniors one by one. For that we need Kohli to stick around for a while and hopefully we get the Kohli of old back

[Lord]

Its a big achievement considering we play less Tests in a year. Eng play a lot and hence get there faster.

 

Only Ashwin has a shot at equalling it soon. Dont think even Jaddu will get there