WATCH: “That was eating me up,” Virat Kohli opens up about his desperation to score Test century
His last century of 136 runs came in 2019 against Bangladesh, so the century drought of over 1200 days was "eating" him up, plus it was tough for him to handle the pressure of expectation.
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Virat Kohli; Rahul Dravid
Virat Kohli was struggling in red-ball cricket to reach the three-figure mark, but eventually, after a gap of over three years, he scored his 28th Test century. Not just a 100 but he was on his way to a double century when Nathan Lyon dismissed him for 186 in the fourth Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The former India captain, in a conversation with head coach Rahul Dravid, opened up about his struggling days on BCCI TV. His last century of 136 runs came in 2019 against Bangladesh, so the century drought of over 1200 days was “eating” him up, plus it was tough for him to handle the weight of expectations.
“Honestly, I’ve let the complications grow on me a bit because of my shortcomings,” Kohli told Dravid. “The desperation to get to the three-figure mark is something that can grow on you as a batsman. I let that happen to me to a certain extent. But a flip side to it is, I’m not a guy who is happy with 40-45. I take a lot of pride in performing for the team.
“It’s not like when Virat Kohli should stand out. When I’m batting on 40, I know I can get a 150. That was eating me up a lot,” the 34-year-old added.
After his comeback, Virat Kohli slammed five centuries
‘King’ Kohli returned to the field after a gap of a month last year, after which he practiced hard in the nets. This paid off because, in the Asia Cup 2022, he showed signs of his return before slamming his maiden T20I hundred in a dead rubber match against Afghanistan, and simultaneously, ended his century drought after three years.
Then he went on to play the knock of his life (82* off 53) against Pakistan in the opening match of the ICC T20 World Cup. After the tournament, the Delhi-born batter slammed three ODI tons (one against Bangladesh and two against Sri Lanka). And this Test century in the fourth Border-Gavaskar Trophy was his 75th one in international cricket.
The fourth Test ended in a draw with India winning the series 2-1. Virat Kohli will be next seen in action during the three-match ODI series against Australia, starting Friday (March 17).
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