Virat Kohli during a training session
The 33-year-old is now expected to play his 100th Test in India at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
After a 113-run victory in Centurion, Team India will eye to seal the 3-match Test series at the Wanderers. The second match would have been Kohli’s 99th outing in the longest format, with the final match in Cape Town being his 100th. However, an upper back spasm ruled him out of the ongoing 2nd Test and KL Rahul stepped in captain’s shoes.
The 33-year-old is now expected to play his 100th Test in India at Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium. Former India cricketer and batting legend Sunil Gavaskar believes it would be an incredible feat for Kohli, who has received a lot of love playing at the venue during his tenure as Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper in the IPL. The next Test series for India will be against Sri Lanka, a two-match assignment in which Kohli is set to play his 100th game.
Gavaskar also hopes that the crowd will be allowed during the Test match since he believes Kohli deserves a standing ovation for his record-breaking Test appearance.
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“The next one is in Cape Town. The 100th Test match will be in Bangalore. And of course, him being the captain of the Royal Challengers Bangalore for such a long time it will be a fantastic experience. We have to see if crowd is allowed there, that is also important. I hope it is allowed because he deserves a huge ovation from the crowd for his 100th Test,” Gavaskar said while commentating during Day One of the Second Test.
Normally, it is uncharacteristic of Kohli to stay away from an overseas Test, especially when he has the possibility to accomplish a historic feat such as India winning its first Test series on South African soil. However, the recurring back problem seems to be the reason for keeping him out. Kohli will become the 11th Indian player to appear in 100 Test matches, following in the footsteps of Sachin Tendulkar (200), Rahul Dravid (163) and others.
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