Throwback: Virat Kohli slammed maiden international century 10 years ago vs Sri Lanka

On December 24, 2009, India captain Virat Kohli posted his maiden international hundred for the senior team. Kohli, who was only 21 at the time, was relatively new in the international circuit. His century came against the visiting Sri Lankan team in the fourth of their five-match ODI series at home that year at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Kohli completes exactly 10 years on Tuesday to celebrate that momentous occasion.

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This day, that year: A throwback to Virat Kohli’s first ODI century

The Sri Lankan team toured India between November-December 2009 for three Tests, two T20Is and five ODIs. After three 50-overs contests, the hosts were leading the series 2-1. In the fourth ODI at Kolkata, Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat first. Owing to some lacklustre Indian bowling, the batters were left to chase 316 runs to pocket the series with a game remaining.

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The Indians were rocked early in their run-chase as the ‘Men in Blue’ lost both the openers for just 23 on the board. Experienced batsman Gautam Gambhir and newcomer Virat Kohli then joined forces as the duo successfully counterattacked the visitors. Both batsmen slammed their respective centuries during their massive 224-run third-wicket stand. Kohli was eventually dismissed after scoring 107 from just 114 balls. His innings comprised of 11 boundaries and a six. Meanwhile, Gambhir remained unbeaten at 150 till the end as the left-hander saw India successfully through in their run-chase.

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Virat Kohli’s century proved to be the first of many to come as the current Indian skipper now has 43 ODI centuries to his credit. With Sachin Tendulkar at 49 tons, Kohli is just second on the list of all-time century-makers in ODI cricket. The Indian captain will now lead the side in the upcoming home T20I series against Sri Lanka in January 2020.

Meanwhile, Kohli was recently retained by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for ₹17 crore ahead of the IPL 2020 auction. The cricketer was part of the RCB line-up during the inaugural edition of IPL in 2008. Since then, he has been a part of the franchise and was appointed as their full-time captain in 2013.

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