Sunil Gavaskar predicts the emotions going through Virat Kohli's head on eve of 100th Test match
Legendary Team India batter Sunil Gavaskar spoke about how Virat Kohli must be feeling on the eve of his 100th Test match.
When India take on Sri Lanka in the first Test in Mohali starting Friday, Kohli will reach the special landmark. Gavaskar, who himself has played 125 Tests, said that it would be an "incredible feeling" for him.
The legendary Sunil Gavaskar takes us through the run of emotions that @imVkohli could feel ahead of his 1⃣0⃣0⃣th Test. 🙌🙌
#VK100 https://t.co/bzsh44xHXm
In a video shared by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), he said:
"Playing the 100th Test for your country is an incredible feeling. All of us, when we are young kids playing in the compound of your house or in the maidans anywhere where we begin our careers, we dream of playing for India. And then, after playing for India, when you come to your 100th Test, it’s an incredible feeling."
He went on to elucidate as to why the feeling is special.
"It’s also a feeling of happiness, a feeling of satisfaction. Because what you want to do when you play for your country is to play for your country successfully, not just make one or two appearances. Reaching the 100th Test match obviously means you have played for the country very, very successfully," Gavaskar said.
He added that Kohli would likely be looking back upon his journey so far as he gears up for the match.
"It’s a feeling where so many thoughts come into your mind, of when you started as a kid, of the problems that you encountered. Because that is what a career is always. No career is a smooth career. There will always be highs and lows. How you cope with the highs. How you deal with the lows. Those are the things that go through your mind on the eve of the match," Gavaskar said.
"The crowd will lift him up" - Sunil Gavaskar on when Virat Kohli steps out to the ground in Mohali
Sunil Gavaskar said that on the day of the match, Virat Kohli would, as a batter, be planning his innings. He added that whenever he does step out to the ground, whether it is to bat or field, "the crowd will lift him up" with their wishes.
"Then you focus on the game the next day. If you’re a batsman, then you’re planning your innings. You’re mentally preparing yourself. And then when you actually enter the field and there is the ovation of the crowd, it’s a feeling that is so hard to describe. And that is what I think Virat Kohli will feel when he enters the Mohali ground, whether he is fielding or going out to bat. The crowd will lift him up," Gavaskar said.
He went on to say how the crowd would cheer him on and wish for him to get a century on the special occasion.
"That is what crowds do. And everybody in the crowd will be wanting him to get a hundred. Get a century in his 100th Test match. And that is what all of us have played for India and even those who haven’t played would wish for him," he said.
Will Virat Kohli be included in this list after his 100th Test? 🤔
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The match was initially supposed to be played behind closed doors. But the BCCI as well as the state association revealed that supporters would be allowed in the stadium.