Former India captain Virat Kohli’s average slipped below fifty in Test cricket for the first time since 2017 as he could only manage 36 runs in both innings in the ongoing second pink-ball Test against Sri Lanka at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday.
In Bengaluru, which is Kohli’s second home because of his IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, the stylish right-hander came into the crease amidst huge cheers after the dismissal of Rohit Sharma on Sunday. Like other batters, Kohli too found it difficult to play his shots on the track that behaved unusually.
With lots of sessions in hand to stamp an authority, Kohli looked positive but he was undone by a Praveen Jayawickrama delivery that kept low and hit him on the pads.
While he was crouching low to help adjust to the low bounce, the star batter played on the backfoot to a play that kept low from Jayawickrama. Kohli was utterly disappointed, frustated and took a long look at the pitch before making his way out of the ground.
It was a similar kind of delivery that got Kohli out in the first innings as well on Saturday when Kohli was taken by surprise as the ball didn’t come to the bat well as expected. The two unfortunate dismissals meant Kohli now has 8043 runs in 101 Tests at an average of 49.95.
He needed 43 runs in the ongoing day-night Test to make sure his Test average remained above. With the two dismissals, the wait for Kohli’s 71st international century got extended as the former skipper’s last ton came against Bangladesh in 2019 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
Kohli scored just 74 runs in three Tests in 2020 and 536 runs in 11 Tests at 28.21 in 2021. Kohli has played 3 Tests in 2022 so far and has managed just 189 runs, including one fifty.
