That error only compounded the Caribbean team’s woes as their bowlers, with the notable exception of Gabriel, were made to look pedestrian especially by the excellence of Kohli’s batting on a pitch that has nearly nothing by way of encouragement in pace and bounce.
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Meanwhile, Ashwin got to his third century in test cricket with a classical backfoot punch.For the records, all his three-figure knocks have come against the West Indies. In the process, he became the first Indian captain to ever score a double ton overseas. But the first thing to do is avoid the follow on and somebody in the top four will have to get a very big hundred like Kohli.
The 36-year-old also said that the hosts with a young team and with hardly any known face will be an advantage for the Virat Kohli-led outfit. “Kohli has certainly maximized his talent in my opinion and taken it to the next level because of the fact of believing and the will he has and the desire to succeed”, Richards said. Ashwin didn’t look in any hurry, Wriddhiman Saha tried to break the monotony, succeeding on a couple of occasions before getting stumped to finally give Dowrich a maiden Test dismissal. “Kraigg Brathwaite and the likes of Darren Bravo”.
Amit Mishra’s fifty and Mohammad Shami’s big hits gave India some a late boost, one that was helped by Holder, Chase and Carlos Brathwaite dropping catches in quick succession. Even kohli was scoring runs quickly and made his half century. After tea, Ashwin also fell for 113 while trying to up the ante.
Kohli’s innings spanned just over six hours and was embellished by 24 fours off 283 deliveries.
The captain declared India’s innings at 566/8 and the home side was 31/1 at stumps.
Ashwin thanked Kohli for giving him the opportunity to bat at number six and is hoping he can make it a permanent switch in the batting order. Ashwin has always had a liking for West Indian bowling.
After India captain Virat Kohli won the toss and batted, West Indies made a confidence-boosting start when fast bowler Shannon Gabriel dismissed Murali Vijay for seven in the seventh over.
“No. At the end of day, whatever team we have to play with as a team, we have to play”.
Playing on a pitch well suited for batting under the sunny Caribbean sky, the duo studiously avoided taking too much risk, focussing instead on keeping the run rate ticking on at a steady slow rate.
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But he did an immaculate job, including some silken drives down the ground, and the two batsmen stayed unbeaten until the end of play, bringing up the 300-mark in the 88th over.
