Published 19:51 IST, February 4th 2021
Virat Kohli's 235 that decimated England at Wankhede in 2016 Test series: WATCH
As India prepare to host England for the 1st Test, the BCCI reminded the visitors of their suffering at the hands of Virat Kohli the last time they came around.
The BCCI has turned up the heat on social media as India prepare to host England for the first of a 4-Test series in Chennai starting on Friday, February 5. The board has been constantly posting revisits and highlights of some of the best knocks by Indians against visiting English sides through history, including Cheteshwar Pujara's 119 and Ravichandran Ashwin's 6/55 from India's highly successful 2016 home series against England. The latest in this crop of videos is skipper Virat Kohli's blazing 235-run knock that brought England down on their knees in Mumbai.
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Virat Kohli centuries to remember from India's series against England
Setting up the scene for one of Virat Kohli's finest centuries, India were 2-0 up, playing England in the 4th Test of a 5-Test series at home. Batting first, the visitors had piled on 400 runs and reduced India to 2-146. In at No. 4, captain Kohli and No. 3 Murali Vijay took it upon themselves to give India a fighting chance at going 3-0 up and preventing an embarrassing defeat at home. Vijay's heroic 136 and a forgotten Jayant Yadav century lie in the wake of the Kohli masterpiece the world witnessed that day.
Smashing from the word go, the skipper put up a massive 235 runs off 340 balls — an achievement made greater by the fact that 106 of those runs came off boundaries. Trying to smash until the end, Kohli was caught by James Anderson at deep extra cover, off of a Chris Woakes delivery. By the time he left, Kohli had ensured that India would take the series. With a total of 631 runs made, the hosts didn't even have to bat a second time, cleaning up the Brits for 195 to clinch the series.
This knock was a historic one for Kohli, taking him past 4000 Test runs, earning him the Player of the Match and making him the first batsman in history to hold an average of at least 50 in all three formats simultaneously.
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Joe Root vs Kohli matchup ahead of India vs England 1st Test
The Joe Root vs Kohli matchup is expected to be a defining feature of the Ind vs Eng series, with both teams banking heavily on their respective skippers for runs and motivation on the field. While Kohli has a definite advantage playing at home, he is significantly behind Root in terms of Test runs with 7,318 to Root's 8,249. The two are otherwise perfectly matched, sharing the same high score, and almost identical averages and strike rates, which will make this tussle a very interesting one.
Virat Kohli baby name and picture
Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma shared the news of the birth of their daughter via a social media post on Kohli's accounts on January 11, 2021. About three weeks later, on February 1, they released the first picture of themselves with their daughter, who they have named 'Vamika'.
Image Credits: AP
Updated 19:51 IST, February 4th 2021