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An unbeaten knock of 101 from Virat Kohli propelled India to a total of 326/5 in their 2023 Cricket World Cup match against South Africa in Kolkata on Sunday.
With the century, Kohli equalled Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI centuries.
Kohli came into bat in the sixth over following Rohit Sharma’s dismissal. After a short-lived partnership with Shubman Gill, Kohli would go onto build a 134-run stand with Shreyas Iyer for the third wicket.
Kohli kept frustrating the South African bowlers with regular boundaries, before eventually getting to his fifty with a single off Keshav Maharaj in the 29th over.
Following his fifty, even if boundaries only came at regular intervals from Kohli, the former India skipper kept calm despite wickets falling at the other end, and showcased his resilience during his knock.
Kohli would then go onto score his century off 119 balls, with a punch towards cover for a single off Rabada’s ball in the 49th over.
Shreyas Iyer, meanwhile, got off to a rather slow start against the Proteas, taking on the spinners Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi cautiously, and dealing with just the ones and twos initially. Iyer would then go onto hit Shamsi for a boundary in the 22nd over, before slamming over Shamsi’s head for a six in the 28th over.
Boundaries continued coming at regular intervals for Iyer, until he reached his fifty in the 31st over, with a four off Marco Jansen’s ball.
Iyer was dismissed by Lungi Ngidi in the 37th over after holing out to Aiden Markram at mid-on.
KL Rahul never really got going, and Suryakumar Yadav (22) failed to convert what was an aggressive start, scoring five boundaries.
In the end, it was Ravindra Jadeja (29*) who remained till the conclusion of India’s innings, in what was yet another exciting batting display to witness from the Men in Blue, especially Virat Kohli.
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