NEW DELHI: The extraordinary Virat Kohli showcased his class by scoring his 76th international hundred in his 500th international appearance as India comfortably reached 373 for 6 at lunch on the second day of the second Test against West Indies in Port of Spain on Friday.
Kohli, who narrowly missed out on a hundred in the previous Test, played a polished innings of 121 runs off 206 balls, marking his 29th Test century in the longest format of the game. He shared a crucial 159-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja (61 off 152 balls).
The partnership between Kohli and Jadeja came to an end as they were dismissed in quick succession. Kohli was caught short of his crease, and West Indies' top bowler Kemar Roach (2/86 in 19 overs) accounted for Jadeja.
At the lunch break, Ravichandran Ashwin (6 not out) was at the crease, accompanied by wicket-keeper batsman Ishan Kishan (18 not out). After a challenging post-lunch session on the first day, India made significant progress towards achieving a healthy first innings total.
The highlight of the second day's first session belonged to Kohli, who displayed complete control against the West Indies pacers. His runs included 77 runs from singles, doubles, and triples, along with 11 boundaries.
Kohli's century came within the first half-hour of play, with a well-placed shot wide of point off a delivery from Roach.
The elation on his face while raising his bat and taking a bow indicated the satisfaction of achieving his first overseas Test hundred in five years, with his last century on foreign soil coming in Perth in 2018.
As always, Kohli's performance stood out as an example of his remarkable skill and dominance in the game.
The Queens Park Oval track is certainly way better for strokeplay compared to first Test venue of Windsor Park in Dominica. One could hit through the line even though there were deliveries that were gripping off the surface and some that stopped and came onto the bat.
Kohli's greatness lay in his game awareness as the cornerstone of his innings was 45 singles and 13 doubles in energy sapping conditions.
He would be pleased because as many as nine of his 11 boundaries were hit on the off-side with the signature cover drive coming out of his closet time and again.
To his relief, the absence of off-break Rahkeem Cornwall did make things a bit easier as Jomel Warrican, despite his restrictive lines, did not get a lot of purchase off the surface.
Most of the deliveries come in with the angle and it was easier to just tickle it off his hips for singles and doubles.
Kohli got an able ally in Jadeja, who got his 19th half-century and reaffirmed his status as a batting all-rounder in overseas conditions.
(With PTI inputs)
