Virat Kohli Slams Twin Hundreds as India Crumble in Adelaide Test

Virat Kohli slammed his second hundred of the first Test against Australia but his effort went in vain as the visitors lost the match by 48 runs to go 1-0 down in the four-match series. (Scorecard | Blog)

Kohli scored his career-best 141 off 175 balls, laced with 16 fours and one six. He needed only 135 balls to bring up his eighth century. (Kohli Overcomes Bouncer to Slam Ton)

Kohli walked in to bat with India in a spot of bother. Cheteshwar Pujara had fallen to Nathan Lyon and the visitors were tottering at 57/2 when the India captain joined a solid Murali Vijay in the middle. Kohli had hammered 115 in the first innings and carried that confidence in the second innings to lead India's defiance against an aggressive Australia.

Kohli has stressed on ruthlessness from his teammates and he led from the front again. He was hit by a Mitchell Johnson bouncer off the first ball he faced in this Test but overcame that initial shock to slam a brilliant century, playing shots on either side of the wicket. In the second innings, Kohli came out all guns blazing and showed scant respect to the Australian attack. Johnson peppered him with short balls but Kohli was quick to pull him away square of the wicket and in front of mid-on.

The 26-year-old from Delhi now has the most runs by an Indian on captaincy debut. While Kohli struggled with his bowling changes and drew some criticism for poor field placements, he was not found wanting with the bat in hand. Playing only his 30th Test, Kohli showed the temperament and class of a legend, taking a strong Australian attack to the cleaners. Johnson was negotiated well, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle were dealt with and Nathan Lyon, who was getting sharp turn, also failed to put Kohli under pressure.

The Delhi boy is the 4th Indian to score a century in each innings and the 7th instance of an Indian having scored twin tons. Vijay Hazare has done it once, Sunil Gavaskar achieved the feat three times while Rahul Dravid two hundreds in the same match twice. He is the first Indian to do it in Australia.

Kohli's innings finally ended on 141 when he was caught by Mitchell Marsh off Nathan Lyon with 60 runs still needed to win.

Kohli is already well respected in what is virtually Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team. On Friday, the stand-in skipper stood up for his teammates when they clashed with Australia's David Warner and Steve Smith. With the bat, he was equally combative and did not take a step backward.

The Australians already have shown a lot of respect for Kohli in the aftermath of the Phillip Hughes tragedy. This series is likely to add to the legend of the young Indian batsman.