Veteran batter Virat Kohli and head coach Gautam Gambhir shared a heartfelt hug on Day 3 of the first Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy on Sunday, November 24, after the former scored his 30th Test century.
The Delhi-born cricketer struggled in the first innings, falling for just five runs, but made a remarkable recovery in the second. Kohli looked solid from the start, reaching his 50 off 94 balls, and continued to play some spectacular shots as he advanced towards his century.
He brought up his 30th Test century off 143 balls, earning applause from his teammates. The BCCI shared a video of players celebrating Kohli’s achievement, and he was later greeted with a warm hug from coach Gautam Gambhir in the dressing room.
Here’s a video of the moment (starting at 0:53):
Apart from Kohli’s unbeaten century, Yashasvi Jaiswal delivered an outstanding performance, scoring 161 off 297 balls, including 15 boundaries and three sixes. KL Rahul also played a solid knock, making 77 off 176 balls.
Toward the end, debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy played a quickfire cameo, remaining unbeaten on 38 off 27 balls as the visitors declared their second innings at 487/6, setting a daunting target of 534 runs.
At stumps on Day 3, Australia found themselves in deep trouble, having lost three wickets for just 12 runs, with 522 runs still required to win.
“He’s the goat for a reason” - Irfan Pathan on Virat Kohli
As Virat Kohli struck his 30th Test century, his seventh in Australia, former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan took to X to commend the 36-year-old. He wrote:
“Never count out Virat Kohli. He’s the goat for a reason.”
Kohli has now scored 1,457 runs in Australia across 14 matches, at an average of 56.03, including four fifties and seven centuries. His overall Test tally has risen to 9,145 runs in 119 matches, with an average of 48.13, featuring 31 fifties and 30 centuries.
Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news