Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli (Credits: Twitter)

Indian captain Virat Kohli might have been unsuccessful in converting his well-composed half-century to triple figures, he top-scored for India against Australia on the first day of the first Test in Adelaide. Virat Kohli’s smooth knock of 74 ended with an unfortunate run-out that let Australia back into the game late in the day. Former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody feels that the 32-year old has mastered the art of batting in Australia.

Virat Kohli came to the crease at the 19th over after Mayank Agarwal’s wicket and looked reasonably at ease in the middle. The right-handed batsman got his first boundary off Nathan Lyon and built a 68-run partnership with Cheteshwar Pujara. But he was also a tad unfortunate as Tim Paine decided not to review when on 16, he edged one behind to Lyon. The replays showed a faint nick on the hotspot; however, there might not have been conclusive evidence to overturn the decision.

Tom Moody
Tom Moody. (Credits: Twitter)

The visiting captain’s wicket undoubtedly opened the doors for Australia and it came within three overs of the new ball’s availability. After Tim Paine took the new ball, the hosts also removed Rahane and Hanuma Vihari. However, Ravichandran Ashwin and Wriddhiman Saha added an unbeaten 27 to take India to 233-6 in 89 overs.

Virat Kohli has mastered the art of batting in Australia: Tom Moody

India, Australia
Virat Kohli after getting run-out [Photo-Twitter]
Tom Moody agreed with Aakash Chopra’s point of Virat Kohli leaving the deliveries judiciously, accepting that one needs to do that well in Australia and know where the off-stump is. The former Australian all-rounder further said that having played down under several times, Kohli knows how to bat here and while he accepts that in some moments, he looked uncomfortable, Moody feels that some of the best innings do ride on luck. The 55-year old added that having been gifted the fortune, the visiting captain made almost the most of it.

“I would start off with the last point that Aakash made that around his leaving of the ball. That thing really stood out for me. One thing you need to do in Australia is understand where your off-stump is and you need to leave the ball well. Kohli has been to Australia on a number of occasions that he has learnt the art of batting. He has mastered the art of batting here and he has shown that ‘yes there a few moments where it’s uncomfortable and yes if Australia went upstairs, he would have been dismissed a lot earlier off Nathan Lyon. But at the end of the day, that’s how some Test innings unfold, they have a little bit of a luck, you ride your luck, and he did that,” Moody told ESPN Cricinfo.

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