Mohali: India captain Rohit Sharma on Thursday affirmed that the team wants to make the first Test against Sri Lanka a memorable one for senior batter Virat Kohli. On Friday, Kohli will become the 12th Indian and 71st Test cricketer to achieve the landmark of featuring in hundred Tests.
“It’s been an absolutely brilliant journey for him. A long one since the time he made his debut and to now go and play his 100th game, it’s been a long journey and a wonderful one. He’s done exceedingly well in this particular format, changed so many things in the way team is moving forward and all of that.”
“It’s been brilliant to watch that and it’s one hell of a ride for him and will continue to be in years to come. We definitely want to make it a special one for him; we all are prepared for that. Let’s hope we have a good five days of cricket,” said Sharma in the pre-match virtual press conference.
Talking about his standout memory of Kohli in Test cricket, Sharma mentioned the Johannesburg Test in 2013, which ended in a thrilling draw. “As a team, I think the series we won in 2018 was very good for us and Virat was the captain there. As an individual, I think the best memory as a batter I remember is his Test hundred (119) against South Africa in 2013. The pitch where we were playing the match was very challenging and had lots of bounce.”
“All of us boys were playing in South Africa for the very first time. To go there and to face someone like Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, (Vernon) Philander and Jacques Kallis, it was never going to be easy. But the way he batted in that match and hit a century in the first innings and was also out around the 90s (96 in the second innings), I think it was one of the best knocks of his that I clearly remember. He had a century at Perth in 2018. But I think this beats that knock and for me, it is his best knock.”
Sharma was also delighted with the 50% crowd allowed for the first Test at IS Bindra PCA Stadium.
“Crowd coming in is a big and great thing. All of us like seeing the crowd. Virat playing his 100th match and the crowd coming in to support him, it is a good thing for us that the crowd is coming in. It is important that there needs to be some noise in the ground, so it makes for a nice atmosphere in the stadium.”
(IANS)
