English vice-captain Ben Stokes on Tuesday celebrated Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s dismissal by dangling his fingers. A delivery – with much assistance from the pitch – laid low to crash into Kohli’s off-stump leaving the batsman disappointed as he walked shaking his head. India lost the first Test match of the series at M Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai by 227 runs, which means Joe Root and company now sit at the top rung of the World Test Championship table and India wait on the fourth.
How The Virat Kohli Dismissal Impacted The Game?
It was the 55th over and Joe Root – with all the confidence – backed Ben Stokes to break the Indian batting partnership. The Indian batting was already seven wickets down. Shahbaz Nadeem on one end was struggling to not hand a catch or get beaten. On the other, it was Virat who was taking on the bowlers.
On the third ball of the Stokes over, the ball landing on good length kept extremely low and passed the Indian skipper’s bat to uproot the off-stump. Kohli, who moved forward for a front defence couldn’t do much as he was dismissed early on 72 runs, hitting nine boundaries in his 104 ball stay.
The Video Of The Kohli Dismissal And Ben Stokes Reaction That Went Viral
Coming in to bat in the 20th over when Jimmy Anderson ripped through the Indian batting line-up, Kohli played the English mainstay committing zero errors. According to stats, he was in 99% control. This too, as he brought up his 24th Test half-century.
Earlier, Jimmy Anderson hurt the hosts by dismissing Shubman Gill, Ajinkya Rahane and Rishabh Pant. He removed three key batsmen in his six-over spell in the first session. England picked five wickets in the morning and pulled India down to 144-6.
The hopes of even a draw clung to Kohli and Ashwin. The duo came back after lunch, playing spinners prudently. Ashwin’s patience didn’t last long. He went to slash Jack Leach but ended up handing a catch to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler.
Off-spinner Jack Leach picked up impressive bowling figures of 26-4-76-4. That was, as India were bundled out for 192 in 58.1 overs. They were chasing 420 runs in the final innings. Anderson clocked the figures of 11-4-17-3.
What Did Virat Kohli Say After The Game About The Loss?
Post the match, Virat accepted the failure. The team has lost four consecutive Tests under him now. On the other hand, Joe Root has registered six consecutive wins as skipper in Asia.
In the post-match ceremony, Virat Kohli said, “No excuses. We are a side that accepts our failures and faults and learns from them. One thing is for sure that in the next three matches we are going to give a tough fight and not let things slip away like it did in this Test. We have to start off with good body language and put pressure on the opposition.
Understand fields, the pace of the pitch and what the bowlers are doing, all those kind of things will be crucial. In the end, it is the mindset and we are trying to get that back.”
He added that the team will bounce back and play their best in the second Test. The next match is also at the same venue and let’s see if Team India can do better now.
