NEWS
Follow UsVirat Kohli and ODI centuries - there's little else in cricket that comes to being as romantic as that. But the maestro was quick to admit that getting ahead oh himself is something he tried to avoid as much, irrespective of the kind of form he was in.
Despite starting off scratchily, he scored his fifty in just 55 balls. Post reach the 50-run-mark, he showed off his gears in classic Kohli style, scoring 72 runs in his next 39 balls.
"I always prepared my game in a way I can help the team. Today was a classic example of how if you don't get off to a good start, you can still hold your ground. KL started better, so I was trying to bring him on strike and playing second fiddle.
"And yes, then after that I stepped up where I could. I take a lot of pride in fitness. Pushing for doubles are easy runs, compared to a big shot. It has paid off before, hope to continue in the same way.
"Both KL and myself are both conventional players. And when you have him batting the way he was and me playing, its tough to break these partnerships because we don't play fancy shots," Kohli said while describing his innings in the post-match presentation.
More than his own ton, Kohli was more pleased about his partnership with KL. The duo got together after both their openers got out in quick succession, not before getting his team off to a flier. After that, they put on an unbeaten partnership of 233 runs - the highest ever for India against Pakistan in the 50-over-format.
"We didn't think about the partnership too much, the idea was to 'keep batting.' It is one of the memorable partnerships we've had and for Indian cricket as well. He hit form for us straightaway, good for us. (Another game in a few hours) Its the first time I have done anything like this in 15 years of cricket," he said.
Lastly, he also spoke about the turnaround time between tonight and their next game tomorrow against hosts Sri Lanka. While he was wary of such short recovery periods, he also emphasised on ensuring that he got his recovery in place before he took the field again.
Luckily we are Test players, so we know how to come back the next day and play. Recovery is crucial. It was humid out there today. I am 35 in November, so I need to take care of my recovery," he added.
