Virat Kohli slammed his 29th Test century and put India in a decent stage. He makes his 500th international match special and gives a great treat to his fans. India in their 1st innings scored 438/10. West Indies also posted a decent score of 86/1 at the end of the day. They are still 352 runs behind.
India started their day 1 score and Kohli after playing his patient knock completed his 29th Test century and overall 76th in international circuit. On day 2, the first one fell to Kohli who got run out when he was at 121 runs. It’s the 3rd time in the history of Test career that he got run-out. His knock of 121 runs includes 11 boundaries. (341-5). Jadeja comes next who gets out. Roach gets the credit for his dismissal. He made 61 runs. (360-6).
Ishan Kishan fell next. Holder got his wicket but a ball earlier, Ishan was dropped by Mckenzie but in the next delivery keeper Joshua Da Silva took a simple catch. He scored 25 runs. (393-7). Warrican gets the wicket of Jaydev Unadkat. Unadkat tried to hit a lofted shot against the wrist spinner but he missed and Joshua took the bails off easily. He made 7 runs. (416-8).
Then Warrican again strikes by taking the wicket of Siraj. Siraj tries to sweep it but he misses and the ball hits his pad. He goes on a duck. (426-9). Last one gone was Ashwin , who provided a valuable knock of 56 runs at the end. Roach bowled him . (438-10).
Roach and Warrican are credited with 3 wickets each and also Roach completed his 400 international wickets. Holder got 2 wickets while Gabriel grabbed 1 wicket.
West Indies in their 1st innings started playing maturely and they showed a proper form of Test cricket. It took 34 overs by India to get the 1st wicket. Tagenarine Chanderpaul departed after scoring 33 runs. Jadeja dismisses him. (71-1). After that Mckenzie and Brathwaite stand like a wall and stick till the end. Brathwaite is at 37 runs while Mckenzie is at 14 runs.
Jadeja gets the only wicket fell on day 2.
On day 3, it will be amazing to see who will get rewarded the lead.
Virat Kohli after the end of the day says,
“I really enjoyed myself out there. I was in the rhythm in which I wanted to be. I always looked at pressure as an opportunity to stand up for my team. I switch on myself in the contest and it gets the best out of me. I took my time, they were bowling in good areas when I walked in so I had to take my time. The outfield wasn’t as quick and fluent as it should have been.”
Scoring a century after 5 years away from home, “these are things for others to talk about. I have got 15 hundreds away from home, that’s not a bad record. I have got hundreds more away than at home. The key is to do well to the best of my ability. We haven’t played 30 matches away from home and I have got a few fifty-plus scores. I want to contribute as much as possible.
….If I get 50 the feeling is I missed out on a 100, if I get 120 the following is I missed out on a 200. These stats and milestones mean nothing in 15 years time, what they will remember is if I left an impact or not.
….I am grateful to play 500 games for India. I never imagined. It’s all hard work. It’s the commitment you give to the sport you are playing which gives you the result. For me converting 1 into 2 is easy runs and I am never going to leave that opportunity. I’m not someone who will wait for a period where I score a bunch of boundaries off 10 balls. If I am scoring six boundaries, I am already batting on 90 which keeps me off pressure.
….My fitness helps me switch between formats easily. I feel I can bat 300 balls, bat at a good strike rate and keep my intensity high. I am committed to play the game to my best fitness abilities.
….West Indies and India go a long way. It is a special occasion for me. Couldn’t have asked for a better beginning for the Test. There is a sense of history to this ground. The crowd loves their cricket here. Antigua and there are my two favorite venues in the Caribbean. Adelaide in Australia and the Bullring in South Africa are my favorites as well.
….The wicket is slow. We have to be patient. Wickets in bunches won’t come. If we can stay in the game and put the scoring rate down, hopefully we can get a few wickets.”