3 instances when Virat Kohli celebrated without rage after a century

The wait is finally over. Virat Kohli, opening the innings for India in their final Super 4 match against Afghanistan on Thursday, September 9, slammed his 71st international ton.

A flat-batted swat that sent the ball sailing over deep mid-wicket saw Kohli get to the three-figure mark after a wait of almost three years. There were no flashy celebrations, no rage of anger, no leaps in the air. There was a smile and a restrained show of emotions soaking it all in.

His innings put the score beyond Afghanistan's reach and although it came one match too late for India, it sure did signal the resurgence of Kohli - the run machine. This century took a while to come and hence, there was no outpour of anything excess.

Here, we take a look at three such instances where Virat Kohli has celebrated his century rather silently:

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#3 First Test double ton

Kohli got to his maiden double don in Antigua.

Back in 2016, Indian captain Virat Kohli scored his first double-century in Tests against the West Indies. He achieved this feat in his 42nd Test match and in the process, became the first Indian captain to notch up a double century away from home.

Kohli won the toss and elected to bat first at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. However, India lost the wickets of Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara cheaply.

Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli then stitched together a healthy 105-run partnership to put the team back in the driver's seat. The Indian captain was in fine form and went on to share a huge partnership of 168-runs with Ravichandran Ashwin (113) as India cruised past the 500-run mark.

He reached his double ton and took off his helmet to soak up the applause. It was also witnessed by the great Sir Vivian Richards. This helped India win the match by an innings and 92 runs.

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#2 136 vs Bangladesh, Kolkata 2019

Virat Kohli was sublime in Kolkata.

After dominating Day 1 of the day-night Test against Bangladesh, Kohli pushed India further ahead at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The Indian captain was in sensational touch and dominated the Bangladesh bowlers to slam his 27th Test century.

It was an assured knock and found the gaps with precision and brought up his ton with a nudge towards square leg. As the crowd went wild, Kohli took off his helmet and raised his bat calmly to soak in the applause.

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#1 122 vs Afghanistan, 2022

Virat Kohli got to his 71st international ton almost after three years.

After a long wait of more than three years, Virat Kohli got to his 71st ton. India were taking on Afghanistan in a match that had no bearing on the context of the Asia Cup 2022. Both teams crashed out of the competition, but Virat Kohli added context to the fixture.

He opened the innings after Rohit Sharma opted to rest for the game. After a cautious start, he opened his shoulders and dominated the spinners. There was assurity, there was calmness and there was excellent strokeplay. There was a new-found freedom and uninhibited aggression and it seemed as if vintage Kohli had made a grand comeback.

When he reached the landmark, there was a big smile, and he dropped to his knees, and there was a sense of calm and immense joy in the way he celebrated this feat.