While every Indian batsman was being scrutinised closely on the opening day of the first Test at Johannesburg yesterday, the performance of the man walking in at No 4 held greater interest. For, he was set to occupy the spot where the legendary Sachin Tendulkar batted for a major part of his glorious career.
But Virat Kohli set the record straight in his first outing itself. The Delhi dasher slammed a gutsy century — his maiden ton against South Africa. Kohli scored 119 as India ended Day One on 255-5.
So, how did Kohli deal with the extra pressure of filling up Tendulkar’s spot? “Somebody had to bat in that position. You cannot skip that spot. I told Virat not to think about that position at all.
I asked him to just think he was getting promoted from number 5 to 4. Either ways, he was not really bothered about the position he was going to bat in. He just wanted to play.
Virat has always played at No 4 for Delhi. So, in a way he is back to his position now,” Kohli’s first coach Rajkumar Sharma told MiD DAY from New Delhi.
The coach said Kohli practiced at his academy before leaving for SA. “We did not have much time, but we practiced on a bouncy track. He has gone with a positive intent and that is showing in his batting.”
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