[Watch] "The King in all his glory" - Virat Kohli's thunderous welcome at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium
Virat Kohli might not have played his 100th Test in Bengaluru but the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium crowd did their best to make his 101st almost as special. As the former captain walked down the pavilion steps and to the crease for the second India-Sri Lanka Test, the ground erupted in deafening cheers and thunderous applause.
Posters of his name were interspersed in the packed stadium and small crowd horns were being blown to their limits. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) uploaded a video of the same on their social media channels, mentioning the special bond between the "The King in all his glory" and the crowd.
You can watch it here:
Kohli has played some of his best cricket at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, both for the national team and his IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Over the years, the 33-year-old has often talked about his visceral, age-old connections with Bengaluru and how he has always felt at home in the city.
Despite the team's failure to win the title under his captaincy, the Delhi-born cricketer is loved like a local boy here. The loyal fans' unwavering support has even made RCB label them as their "12th man army".
Virat Kohli, Hanuma Vihari settle against the pink ball after early jitters
India didn't get off to the best of starts in the pink-ball Test. Opener Mayank Agarwal was involved in a strange dismissal and went back for 4 (7). Skipper Rohit Sharma followed him soon after for a 25-ball 15, edging a turning ball from left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya to gully in the 10th over.
Kohli and Hanuma Vihari have rebuilt well since then. Both have survived a couple of half chances and lbw appeals, but have looked quite settled overall. At the time of writing, Hanuma was batting at 31 (74) and the former at 19 (40), with the partnership closing in on the 50-run mark.