Virat Kohli’s Spectacular Century:
Virat Kohli‘s spectacular century steers India to victory against West Indies it was a thrilling display of Cricket excellence. During India’s batting innings, after the hosts had taken four wickets in relatively quick time on the first day, Virat Kohli and Jadeja came together after tea. They played cautiously on Thursday, and as long as they were together, it seemed inevitable that the former captain would need just 13 runs for his 29th Test century. The left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla from the Windward Islands attacked vigorously from the start, but he found Joshua Da Silva just a single run after reaching his century.
Virat Kohli, with his cover drives, one of the most attractive aspects of his batting, was on display multiple times during his century and even managed to take on the slow outfield of Queen’s Park Oval to convert well-timed shots into boundaries. Virat Kohli and Jadeja, always on their toes, ran hard between the wickets, and when they had crossed the 50-run mark, it seemed like they might both reach centuries. But before they could do so, Kemar Roach dismissed Virat Kohli with a sharp delivery that found the edge to the wicketkeeper.
During his innings of 76 in Dominica, he had to struggle, but that hard work helped him achieve a century in the next innings. Watching him celebrate on Windsor Park was extraordinary, as if he were a milestone for himself, as he battled through the demanding challenge.
On Thursday, this experienced player was stuck on zero for 20 deliveries in the middle session, but he didn’t get frustrated even for a moment. His approach was confident and precise, and once he got going, he didn’t look back.
Virat Kohli’s cover driving, one of the most appealing facets of his batting, was on display several times during his century, and even the slow outfield at the Oval couldn’t prevent well-timed shots from reaching the boundary. His partnership with Jadeja, among wickets falling, showcased a quick scoring rate and confidence, indicating that Virat Kohli was ready for this task despite the absence of a strong challenge from the opposition. Virat Kohli’s determination and patience were evident as he battled through the Windies’ attack.
Once Jadeja went past 50 and started celebrating with raised sword, it seemed like he would complete the century, just before he gifted a catch to Joshua Da Silva off Chemar Holder’s bowling. Ishan Kishan started in an aggressive manner, and immediately after receiving a life-saving gift, he hit Holder for four boundaries before getting bowled by him.
Ashwin’s Half Century:
But the favorite foe for the West Indies’ bowlers, Ravichandran Ashwin, was steadily advancing towards his half-century. He had faced some tough short-pitched bowling by the pacers, but the West Indies couldn’t do much beyond that. It happened when Rahkeem Cornwall attacked Jasprit Bumrah and almost sent him back, but Ashwin found a way to survive. Later, the fast bowlers easily dismissed and got past the tailenders, but left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican’s delivery tempted Ashwin to sweep and got him caught at the crease. After that, Ashwin was cautious against Roach, not taking any risks.
Ashwin’s half-century, while steadily defending against Roach’s bowling, added some more runs for the team. When Siraj arrived at number 10, it was evident from his pace and spin against Ashwin that he was a more audacious bowler. Siraj came out with a paddle sweep and glided one over slips for a four, inspiring a lively chase from West Indies. However, the left-handed spinner Warrican’s attack induced him to take on a full ball, which was caught in front, leading to a leg-before wicket.
After that, Ashwin cautiously navigated through Roach’s relatively weaker short-pitched deliveries. However, later, Roach’s careful bowling outside the off-stump helped Ashwin complete his century and added some more runs for the team. The fast bowlers tried to target him and change the pace, but Ashwin was composed, not looking to go for big shots.
At the end of the day, the West Indies had reached 86/1, still trailing India’s total by 352 runs.
After taking just five Indian wickets in Dominica, the West Indies managed to dismiss the visitors, but Rohit Sharma and company set a challenging target of 438 runs, which was a tough challenge for the host team, just like the first Test match.
However, the West Indies’ innings started very solid and steady this time, as opening batsmen Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell focused particularly on their survival and took 22 overs to reach 50 runs. Spin was introduced early in the pace, but due to the lessons learned by the West Indian batsmen from the first Test in Dominica and the pitch not being as responsive, there wasn’t much joy as they ended day 2 at 86/1, still 352 runs behind the Indian total. They’ll need to bat through the entire third day and perhaps beyond to equalize the Indian score.
Newcomer Mohammed Siraj was impressive, stable, and accurate. His pace wasn’t one of his main strengths, but he extracted some seam movement off the surface, making it challenging for the West Indian batsmen.
Initially, the run rate had slowed down to less than two runs per over, but after losing both openers in approximately 65 and 50 overs, the hosts didn’t have much to complain about. Captain Rohit Sharma had to bring back Mohammed Siraj, which posed a small challenge for the Caribbean opening batsmen. He tried to target both the short staff, but couldn’t find success.
To read more performances of Indian players please visit in our other news article of same series.
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