Virat Kohli is on the verge of a third consecutive century in ODIs, a feat he has achieved in the past.
He has got back-to-back centuries 11 times in his career. Kumar Sangakkara holds the record of most consecutive centuries — four.
The former captain has been in superb touch in this series with the third match in Visakhapatnam, one of his favourite venues. He averages 97.83 there in ODIs at better than a run-a-ball.
Ravichandran Ashwin believes Kohli has taken every whisper about his future “straight to the heart” and is now batting with a point to prove. Kohli’s animated celebrations after his hundreds in Ranchi and Raipur were seemingly aimed at silencing the doubters about his abilities.
“We understand what’s the journey inside him. Let’s not forget to understand why is Virat celebrating like that? What is he thinking? What has he gone through?
“Let’s not forget that Virat left Test cricket. And Virat and Test cricket have been very, very synchronous. He likes Test cricket very much. He always wants to play but
he has left the Test cricket format. It’s not only about his
requirements. Right?” Ashwin said on his YouTube
channel Ash ki Baat.
“Whatever discussions were going on and obviously he did not score many runs in Test cricket. Given an opportunity with good communication, for all you know we don’t know what he wanted to do, but to leave the sport is a very big decision. And there were also talks... Right now he has said yes to play Vijay Hazare.
“Clearly, communication is happening. But there is a lot of conversation and in many ways. The message must have gone inside Virat that ‘are you people doubting my ability?’ Because Virat is a very competitive person. So the thought must have gone inside him that there is a doubt on my ability, my skill. I will now show by performing.”
Ashwin reiterated that Kohli is telling himself that ‘you doubted me. I did it’.
“He looks in a good space. Looks like he had good practice. His mind is in good space. He has scored two centuries. He is telling not the world. He is telling himself. You doubted me, I did it. I have got it in me and that is what I saw when he celebrated,” said Ashwin.
No place for Gill
Ashwin also believes that Shubman Gill could be a weak link in the challenging batting conditions of South Africa during the 2027 World Cup. He said Ruturaj Gaikwad could be a good option in the top-order.
“Ruturaj Gaikwad is a fine player of pace bowling. He only has one issue, and that is with the moving ball, and there is a chance that you could get him out with
swing bowling. However, he is a different player if the new ball threat is taken away,” Ashwin said.
“The 2027 World Cup will take place in South Africa, and if Shreyas Iyer comes back, then Virat could be pushed to the top-order alongside Rohit as Virat has the experience of opening in T20s, and in such a scenario, both Gaikwad and Iyer can play in top four.”