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Virat Kohli will be hoping for a productive outing in Mumbai having managed 88 runs in the first two matches of the ongoing series with New Zealand.
Virat Kohli recently completed 9000 runs in Test cricket. (BCCI Photo)
India are gearing up for the third and final Test of their current series with New Zealand at home. They have already lost the series – their first such defeat at home since 2012. For the Rohit Sharma-led side, the aim will be to avoid a clean sweep and keep the chances of making it to the final of the ICC World Test Championship in their own hands.
The Test will also be significant for Virat Kohli who himself is battling a dip in form. Having scored a half-century in the series opener, Kohli could only muster 1 and 17 across the two innings of the Pune Test as India suffered another big defeat.
The third Test, set to be held at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, will give Kohli a final chance to regain some confidence before the team starts preparing for their upcoming tour of Australia where they will play five Tests.
And the 35-year-old will be delighted at the prospect of playing at the venue given his excellent record here. The former captain has played five Tests at the Wankhede Stadium and scored 469 runs at an average of 58.62 including a double-century.
600th Innings
Kohli is also on the brink of becoming the third ever Indian to have recorded 600 innings across formats after Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. So far, Kohli has played in 599 innings (199 in Tests, 283 in ODIs and 117 in T20Is) since making his international debut in 2008.
The legendary Tendulkar with 782 innings tops the list of most innings in international career followed by Sri Lankan Mahela Jayawardene (725) and Ricky Ponting (668) of Australia in the top three.
200th Innings
Incidentally, it will also be the 200th innings of Kohli’s Test career too. Counted among the finest batters in history of the game, he has thus far scored 9035 runs in 199 innings at an average of 48.31 including 29 centuries and 31 half-centuries.
Kohli has been far from his best in 2024 so far. After returning from the South Africa tour, he missed the entire five-match Test series against England at home due to personal reasons before making a return to the format in September when India hosted Bangladesh for two matches. So far, in five Tests, he has aggregated 245 runs at 27.22 with a highest score of 70.
