What is Virat Kohli's record in pink-ball Tests?
Team India are gearing up to take on Australia in the pink-ball Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which begins at the Adelaide Oval on Friday, December 6. The visitors are 1-0 up in the series, having registered a thumping 295-run win in Perth - their biggest win in terms of runs in a Test Down Under.
Senior batter Virat Kohli went into the match with plenty of question marks over his form. The 36-year-old had struggled during the three-match Test series against New Zealand at home, managing only 93 runs in six innings at an average of 15.50. He was dismissed for five in the first innings in Perth but rediscovered his form with an unbeaten 100 off 143 in the second innings.
Taking a look at his record in day-night Test matches, Kohli has featured in all four of India's pink-ball Tests. The right-handed batter has an impressive record, scoring 277 runs at an average of 46.16, which includes one hundred.
In India's first pink-ball Test against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in November 2019, Kohli notched up 136 off 194 in the first innings. His knock featured 18 fours as the hosts won the game by an innings and 46 runs. It took more than 1,000 days before the batter reached the three-figure mark again.
Kohli's second day-night Test was against Australia in Adelaide in December 2020 during India's previous visit Down Under. Leading the team, he scored a fluent 74 in the first innings before getting run-out following a mix-up with Ajinkya Rahane. India came up with a disastrous effort in the second innings and were infamously bowled out for 36 as Australia won by eight wickets.
The seasoned batter scored 27 in the pink-ball Test against England at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in February 2021. He was bowled by Jack Leach. It proved to be a significant contribution in a two-day Test as India won the low-scoring game by 10 wickets.
What happened the last time Virat Kohli played a pink-ball Test match?
Kohli was disappointing in the day-night Test against Sri Lanka at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru in March 2022. He was out for 23 in the first innings, trapped lbw by Dhananjaya de Silva. In the second innings, the right-hander batter was out for 13, leg before to Praveen Jayawickrama.
Despite the low scores from their premier batter, India won the Test by 238 runs. Shreyas Iyer contributed 92 and 67, while Rishabh Pant scored 39 and 50. Jasprit Bumrah claimed eight wickets.