Virat Kohli's top 3 ODI hundreds against West Indies
Virat Kohli is arguably one of the greatest ODI batters of all time. He has a staggering record - 12285 runs at a mind-boggling average of 58.77 and an incredible strike rate of 92.97. The former skipper has also scored the second-most centuries (43) in the history of the format after Sachin Tendulkar (51).
Kohli has a magnificent record against the Men in Maroon. He has scored 2235 runs in 38 innings at an average of 72.09 and a strike rate of 97.34, with nine centuries and 11 half-centuries to his name. Kohli has the most runs by an Indian against West Indies in ODI cricket.
The fact that Virat Kohli has 10 fifties in his last 17 innings since he made a hundred speaks volumes of his consistency in the format. He will be looking forward to breaking his century-less streak in the upcoming ODI series against West Indies, which starts on February 6.
We take a look at Virat Kohli's top three ODI hundreds against West Indies.
#3 157* (129), Vishakhapatnam 2018
24-10-2018
📍24-10-2018
GOAT!! https://t.co/dKHPptfKK7
India won the toss in the second match between India and West Indies in the 2018 ODI series and elected to bat first. The Men in Blue lost both their openers in the first powerplay - Roach dismissed Rohit Sharma for 4 and Ahsley Nurse removed Shikhar Dhawan for 29. India were reduced to 49/2 in the first 10 overs with Virat Kohli and Ambati Rayudu in the middle.
Kohli realized the wicket was slow. He paced his innings accordingly, with Rayudu being the aggressor in the 139-run partnership for the third wicket. However, neither MS Dhoni (20) nor Rishabh Pant (17) were able to support Kohli till the end of the innings.
Kohli accelerated quickly after reaching the triple-figure mark for the 37th time in his career. He added 48 runs off his last 17 balls, which proved to be extremely crucial.
Shai Hope (123*) and Shimron Hetmyer (94) were magnificent in the run-chase, which was also aided by dew. Virat Kohli was adjudged the Player of the Match in the tied encounter.
#2 140 (107), Guwahati 2018
We love this sight 😍
How about you?
@Paytm #INDvWI #KingKohli #ViratKohli https://t.co/UQL8wEollI
India won the toss in the first match of the series and elected to bowl first. West Indies were 86/3 when Shimron Hetmyer walked in to bat in the 16th over and Kieran Powell scored a quick-fire half-century.
Soon after, they were reduced to 114/4 in the 22nd over after Shai Hope was dismissed for 32. Hetmyer played exceptionally well for his 106 off just 78 balls. Lower-order contributions from Holder (38), Roach (26*) and Bishoo (22*) took West Indies to 322/8 in the 50 overs.
In response, India lost the early wicket of Shikhar Dhawan (4) in the second over of the innings. West Indies knew they had to remove Virat Kohli early in the innings to put more pressure on the Indian team, so they attacked with two slips and bowled bouncers at him.
However, Kohli punished the bowlers for every minute error, as he raced away to a 50 in just 35 deliveries. His early counter-attack set up momentum for the rest of the chase.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made light work of the chase once the spinners came on to bowl. They added 246 runs for the 2nd wicket in just 31 overs before Kohli was stumped off the bowling of leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo for 140.
Sharma (152*) and Rayudu (22*) took India home in the run-chase while Virat Kohli was adjudged the Player of the Match for his quick-fire hundred.
#1 114*(99), Port of Spain 2019
West Indies elected to bat first in the rain-affected third ODI at the Port of Spain. The opening duo of Chris Gayle (72) and Evin Lewis (43) gave them a blistering start as they added 115 runs for the first wicket in just 11 overs. They ended up with 240/7 in 35 overs with the help of cameos from Pooran, Hetmyer and Hope. West Indies set India a target of 255 (DLS method).
India lost the early wicket of Rohit Sharma for just 10 due to a mix-up between him and Dhawan. However, Virat Kohli looked in good fun when he came in to bat. He added 67 runs for the 2nd wicket in 9.4 overs with Dhawan. Dhawan (36) and Pant (0) then got out in the same over, which put more pressure on Kohli to take the team home.
Kohli was well supported by Shreyas Iyer for the remainder of the chase. Their partnership added 120 runs in just 15.4 overs. Roach dismissed Iyer after a well-made 65 off 41 deliveries.
Kohli reached 20,000 international runs during the course of this innings as he scored his last ODI hundred (43rd) for quite some time. He was adjudged the Player of the Match as well as the Player of the Series for scoring 100s in both games, as India won the series 2-0.