Last Sunday, at Centurion, it was a one-man show. Virat Kohli's magnificent century looked even more grander in its solitary character even as the rest of the Indian batsmen had little to show in terms of effort. Kohli made 153 of the 307 runs that India scored in the first innings of the second Test match. He punished the bowler for every minute mistake he made just as he would slam any accusation that dare comes his or his team's way. A very Kohli-esque effort, which one again underlined the fact that he is more than a cut above the rest of the batsmen he has chosen to play in the series.
This was a familiar territory to many. Former India cricketer and television commentator Sanjay Manjrekar tweeted as the Kohli innings took shape at Centurion : “We have gone back to the 90s when India was overseas. Batting hinged on one man...Tendulkar...now its Virat.”
It is the early to mid 90s that Manjrekar speaks about, when India had some great talent like Mohammed Azharuddin, Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Ravi Shastri. The likes of Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, V.V.S. Laxman and Virender Sehwag came much later and, in fact, transformed into match-winners in their own right at the turn of the 20th century.
Manjrekar would surely be remembering Tendulkar's 114 at Perth in 1992 and 111 in Johannesburg in 1992. He was part of the team and witness to these unforgettable essays. They stood out not just for their sheer excellence but for the situation they came in—with the Indian innings in ruins.
Last year was a terrific one for Kohli in all forms of the game. With 2,818 runs in 52 innings at an average of 68.73 across Tests, ODIs and T20Is, he was the top run-getter in 2017. In Tests, he had an average of 75.64 (1,059 runs in 10 matches), notwithstanding a rare batting failure against Australia, when he scored only 46 runs in three Tests. Compare this with the averages of some other Indian top-order batsmen in 2017, and it's clear how much Team India depends on its skipper: Dhawan 68.75 (550 runs in 5 matches, which included a 190 against Sri Lanka in Galle), Vijay 52.00 (520 runs in 6 matches), K.L. Rahul 48.69 (633 runs in 9 matches), Pujara 67.05 (1,140 runs in 11 matches) and Rahane 34.62 (554 in 11 matches). All the matches were played either in India or the subcontinent.
South Africa players celebrate after Cheteshwar Pujara was run out in the second Test match at Supersport cricket ground in Centurion | Reuters
The Test series against South Africa was the first overseas one for India after achieving the number one rank in International Cricket Council Test ratings. Head coach Ravi Shastri said while embarking on the SA tour that “overseas tours will define India”. It was the first of the three big 'Tests' awaiting Kohli's India from 2018 onwards. The Indian bowling attack of three seamers, a bowling all-rounder and one spinner paid rich dividends. The batting, however, imploded sans for two solo essays in the Freedom series—Hardik Pandya scoring 93 in the first Test, apart from Kohli's ton in the second. None of the other top-order batsmen have even scored a half century.
Even Krishnamachari Srikanth, former India skipper, in his column in a national newspaper, while blasting the lack of application from rest of the Indian batsmen, hailed Kohli. “My heart goes out to Virat Kohli the batsman. The manner in which he handled the bowling in the first innings made us believe he was playing on a different wicket against a different attack. He deserved support from his top order colleagues.... At the end of the day this team looks like a team of good bowlers and one great batsman.”
Kohli the batsman has stood tall above the rest of his colleagues, in terms of intent, application, technique and, most importantly, the heart to fight it out out there and make a statement. The rest of his batting mates may be stylish in appearance and batting but have lacked the fire to put up any semblance of a fight, despite the bowlers putting the team in a position twice to edge past South Africa. Not that he does not have his share of troubles in seaming conditions but the Delhi lad has not allowed the failures of the first Test in Cape Town affect his batting in the second. You may not like his fiery temper and his expressive and in-your-face attitude on the field, you may not agree with his decisions as a captain on this tour, but when it comes to batsman Kohli, you can only marvel at him and applaud him.
Soon after the debacle, there was some cheer for Kohli the batsman. The ICC declared Kohli the winner of the coveted Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the Cricketer of the Year. He was also adjudged the men's ODI cricketer of the year. He was also adjudged the captain of the ICC Test XI and the ICC ODI XI.
The Indian skipper also went on to become the second Indian after Sunil Gavaskar to scale 900 points in the Test rankings for batsmen, after his 153 in Centurion. Sir Donald Bradman tops the list with 961 points followed by current Australian skipper Steven Smith at 947. At present, 47 points is what separates Smith and Kohli.
Given the lack of guts and gumption on display among the rest of the Indian batsmen, one must revel in Kohli's achievements. Kohli the Test captain can be dissected thereafter.
