Virat Kohli Banks On Stellar Wankhede Numbers To Break Ricky Ponting's Big Record In 2nd Test vs New Zealand

India are set to receive a much-needed boost with the return of regular captain Virat Kohli in the side for the second and final Test against New Zealand in Mumbai starting on Friday (December 3). Kohli, who had not featured in the three-match T20I series and also in the first Test in Kanpur, will be back as the leader of India to play his first match under the guidance of newly-appointed head coach Rahul Dravid. Kohli's presence in the side is certain to strengthen the Indian middle-order which has been struggling for runs as the experienced Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have been out of touch. 

Kohli will enter the field at Wankhede Stadium on Friday with a huge record in sight. The 33-year-old currently has 70 centuries across formats with 41 one of those as captain. Kohli needs only one century to go past the legendary Australia batter Ricky Ponting to register most hundreds as captain across formats. Both Kohli and Ponting are currently tied at the top spot with 41 tons each as captain. 

Kohli, however, is not the in the best of touches in red-ball cricket. The India ODI and Test captain, who sets incredibly high standards, has not scored a century in any format for more than two years. The last time Kohli scored a century was 56 innings ago against Bangladesh in a Day/Night Test in November 2019. 

But the Indian captain is returning to the Wankhede Stadium, where he averages 72.16 - his third best at a particular venue in Tests. Kohli has scored 433 runs in the four Tests that he has played at the Wankhede Stadium. Moreover, the last time he came out to bat at this venue, he scored 235 runs against England in 2016. 

The weather in Mumbai - it has been raining for the last two days - may help the seamers initially but if India bat first, trust Kohli to come out with a positive intent. The Indian captain had been training with former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar at the CCI in Mumbai in the lead up to this Test. 

"It was just to stay in the rhythm of playing red-ball cricket. The idea was to get repetition and volume which is important in Test cricket, so it is just about getting into the mould of switching between formats. This is something I have always tried to do. Whenever I get the opportunity to work on setting up for different formats, it is more so mentally than anything related to technique," said Kohli in a virtual press conference on the eve of the series decider.  
 

Topics mentioned in this article

India vs New Zealand 2021 Virat Kohli Ricky Ponting India Cricket Team New Zealand Cricket Team Cricket