Virat Kohli: A Look At King's Journey Through 99 Test Matches; Reliving His Top Test Knocks

Former Indian captain and U19 World Cup-winning captain, Virat Kohli is set to play his 100th test match for team India on March 4th (Friday). As Kohli will take the field against Sri Lanka in the 1st test of the 2-match series, he will become the 71st player in the world and 12th Indian to play 100 test matches for the team. 

Virat will join an elite list of Indian cricketers with 100 test caps - Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sunil Gavaskar, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Dilip Vengsarkar, Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh & Ishant Sharma. The 33-year old batter has taken an extra liking for the longer format and has given his best every time he came on the field for the team. 

Virat Kohli made his test debut against West Indies in 2011. However, young Kohli couldn't perform as his reputation suggests he might have, scoring 19 runs in his first test match. However, over a period of 11 years, Virat Kohli will be playing his 100th test which is a testament to his excellence in the format. 

The Indian batter has registered 7,962 runs to his name in 99 matches, averaging 50.9 with 27 hundreds and 28 fifties, including 6 double centuries. Let's have a look at various records held by Virat Kohli in Test cricket, followed by his top 5 batting knocks in his international test career. 

Virat became only the second player after Greg Chappell to score twin hundreds on his captaincy debut. In the 1st test at Adelaide, which was also Virat's captaincy debut, the batter scored 115 runs in the 1st innings as India replied with 444 to Australia 517/7 d. After the hosts declared their second innings on 290/5, setting a target of 364 runs for the Indians, Virat Kohli led a battle for a losing cause with his 141, but apart from Murali Vijay (99), none of the other batters were able to cross the 25-run mark as India lost the match by 48 runs. 

Kohli ranks second amongst captains with the most centuries in test cricket. The Indian batter has registered 20 Test centuries while former South African captain Graeme Smith is the only captain ahead, with 25 centuries. 

Since his debut, Kohli has scored 27 centuries. Only Australian batter Steve Smith has as many centuries, and are more than Kane Williamson, David Warner and Joe Root's century count. 

The energetic and charismatic Delhi-born has led India in most test wins as captain, winning 40 out of 68 matches with a win percentage of 58. Out of these, 24 wins have come at home for team India. 

Let's have a trip down memory lane as we reminisce 'King' Kohli's top knocks in test cricket on the next page.

116 vs Australia, Adelaide 2012

In the fourth test of the Border-Gavaskar trophy 2011-12, India were playing for pride as they were already 3-0 behind in the 4 match test series. Australians continued their dominance as they declared their first inning on 604/7 after opting to bat first. When Virat Kohli came out to bat, India was at 87/4 in 33.5 overs, and had lost big names like Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar. The 23-year-old Virat at the time displayed his guts as he scored 116, contributing around 43% of the team total (272). However, India went on to lose the match by 298 runs and were whitewashed 4-0 in the test series. 

169 vs Australia, Melbourne 2014

In the Border-Gavaskar trophy 2014-15, team India were yet again off to a bad start as they lost the first two matches. In this do-or-die match for the tourists, hosts posted 530 in the first innings after opting to bat first. In reply, India managed 465 runs on the board as Virat Kohli scored 169 runs off 272 balls, as he took on a bowling attack comprising of Mitchell Johnson, Josh Hazlewood & Ryan Harris. This match ended in a draw and interestingly, MS Dhoni left the Test captaincy after this match and Virat was anointed the new test leader for the Indian team. 

235 vs England, Mumbai 2016

In the 4th test of the 5-match series between India and England at Mumbai, Virat Kohli thrashed the English bowling attack which included James Anderson, Chris Woakes, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. Kohli scored 235 and brought up third double hundred of his career, smashing 25 fours and a six. Consequently, India posted 631 runs and won the match by an innings and 631 runs. 

254 vs South Africa, Pune 2019

Virat Kohli brought up his highest score in test cricket against South Africa in the 2nd test against South Africa in 2019. India declared their first innings on 601/5 after opting to bat first. Kohli looked in tremendous touch as he smacked 254 runs off 336 balls with 33 fours and 2 sixes. South Africa came on to bat twice then but still fell 137 runs short, as India won the match by an innings. Virat Kohli was adjudged the player of the match for his absolute and sheer dominance with the bat. 

Click here to watch Virat Kohli's 254 highlights

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Virat Kohli will play against Sri Lanka at Mohali on March 4th, and will be hoping to score his much-awaited 71st international century, as the first Indian inning of the match will be the 71st inning for Kohli since his last ton, as he becomes the 71st player in the world to play 100 international test matches.