Virat Kohli Shows Teammates How To Play Matthew Kuhnemann: All but one Indian batter looked in tatters in the first session of the Indore Test against the Australian spinners, in particular Matthew Kuhnemann, who picked up his maiden Test five-wicket haul in only his second Test, having made his debut in the Delhi Test.
India came in the Indore Test with a 2-0 lead hoping to seal the series and their place in the WTC final. However, the visitors rocked the hosts with some terrific bowling, their spinners making the best use of the raging turner that the Holkar stadium dished out.
India lost 7 wickets in the first session, after electing to bat first, and were bowled out soon after lunch, for 109 in 33.2 overs.
The fact that the highest score for India in their first innings was 22, by Virat Kohli, tells the tale of India’s horror show with the bat.
Right from his first over, the 6th of India’s innings, Kuhnemann was on song and most of the Indian batters struggle to play him, let alone score against him.
The left-arm spinner dismissed Rohit Sharma in his first over and Shubman Gill in his second before Nathan Lyon from the other end chipped in with wickets of Pujara and Jadeja. Shreyas Iyer too succumbed to Kuhnemann.
Virat Kohli watched all of this, but the 34-year-old remained determined to survive and tick the scoreboard.
Virat Kohli was easily India’s best batsman today, not just being the top-scorer with 22 runs but also the only batsman to face over 50 balls. The former India skipper was excellent with his footwork against the Aussie spinners, knowing exactly when to play on the front foot and when to go back.
Kohli was immaculate in his judgment of length; he picked up the lengths early and promptly made quick calls to make his feet movement. The right-hander was exceptional, in particular, when going on the back foot. In this Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 series, Kohli has pushed himself on the back foot more frequently than he perhaps used to in the past, reinventing his game as the pitches get tougher to bat on.
One shot from Virat Kohli in particular highlighted this as he judged a length ball from Kuhnemann really quickly and played a backfoot flick for four, giving the crowd something to cheer on in a rather forgetful session for India.
Watch: Virat Kohli hits a brilliant backfoot boundary to Matthew Kuhnemann
The King arrives, the King flicks, the King picks up 4! 😍@imVkohli gets going with his first boundary. 👑
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