Virat Kohli went on to notch his maiden double century, while Ravichandran Ashwin scored his third century against West Indies as India went on to pile 566 for eight before declaring in the first innings of the first Test in Antigua.
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The elegant Kohli played some exquisite drives and rocked onto the back foot at every opportunity to score through the leg side as he raced towards another century.
Despite wickets falling at other end, the skipper played his natural game and with night-watchman Ashwin, kept the run flow going and helped India cross the 300-run mark at end of day’s play and stay on course for a big first-innings total on the second day of the India vs West Indies 1st Test 2016 match.
The hosts trail India by 535 runs at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. A sloppy effort in the field also made matters worse for the home team.
Kohli was on 143 at the close of play on Thursday (Friday NZ time), his 12th test century, as the visitors reached 302-4. It feels good to bat with him and we were rotating strike and scoring runs at a good pace.
In the absence of Jerome Taylor and Kemar Roach, West Indies’ long-time new-ball pair, their fast bowlers are still “learning the art”, their bowling coach Roddy Estwick said after the second day’s play of the Antigua Test.
Rajendra Chandrika went for 16 in the penultimate over of the day when he got a thick edge to the keeper off paceman Mohammed Shami.
Wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha next walked out into the middle to join Ashwin and both ensured they had another strong partnership. Coming back here and getting a double hundred gives me a lot of satisfaction purely because of the fact that I have missed a couple of big scores in the past, “said Kohli, who had averaged just over 15 in the 2011 trip to the Caribbean”.
Saha started off slow but quickly gained momentum as Roston Chase (0-102) and Kraigg Brathwaite (3-65) were brought on in tandem.
The departure of the well-set Kohli early in the second session did not have any effect on India’s batting as Ashwin completed his ton to put India on 512/6 at tea.
The left-hander batsman, who was dismissed for 84, also said that India were in a “good position” especially because they are playing five specialist bowlers for the opening Test of the four-match series.
By the time he had fallen to Gabriel immediately upon the resumption in the afternoon, his six hours at the crease had occupied 283 deliveries, striking 24 boundaries. Ashwin batted beautifully and got a hundred (100) as well.
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Continuing his effusive praise, Richards said Kohli’s will and desire to perform set him apart from the rest.
