Will Virat Kohli achieve his 30th Test hundred against Bangladesh?

After playing a match-winning knock of 76 runs in the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 against South Africa, India’s run machine, Virat Kohli, is all set to feature in the 2-match Test series against Bangladesh, starting from 19th September 2024 in Chennai. This will be Kohli’s first appearance in the red-ball format after a gap of 8 months, as he was last seen playing against South Africa in December 2023. His last home appearance in Tests was against Australia in February 2023 during a 4-match series, which India won 2-1.

Despite not playing in the long format frequently in recent years, Kohli has been actively participating in both the 50-over and short formats, where he was among the leading run-scorers for the Men in Blue during the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023, followed by the seventeenth edition of the Indian Premier League for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Meanwhile, Kohli has already announced his retirement from the T20I format. Considering his age and fitness level at 35, we can expect him to potentially surpass Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 100 centuries, as Kohli has already hit 80 tons in his 16-year international career. Despite being the closest active Indian player to Sachin’s record, Kohli has not scored a century in the last year, with his last hundred coming against the West Indies in July 2023 at Queen’s Park Oval. As the upcoming Test series against Bangladesh approaches, the senior player will undoubtedly aim to end the 12-month wait and score his 30th Test hundred.

Possible Reasons for Kohli’s 30th Test Hundred

1. Good Record at Chepauk Stadium

The first Test between India and Bangladesh will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, marking Kohli’s 114th Test match. Virat Kohli holds a good record at Chepauk Stadium, with an average of over 45 in 6 games, scoring 267 runs, including a century. Additionally, Kohli has registered two half-centuries in the red-ball format at this venue.

2. Brilliant Stats vs Bangladesh

Virat Kohli has played some of his best knocks against Bangladesh in international cricket. He scored his first World Cup ton against them in the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2011, in the opening game alongside former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag. In the red-ball format, Kohli also has an excellent record, having scored two hundreds against Bangladesh, one of which was a double century in 2017 in Hyderabad.

Kohli has played a total of 6 Test matches against the Bangladesh Tigers, amassing 437 runs at an average of 54. Given this track record, there’s reason to believe Kohli can score his 30th Test hundred in the upcoming series.

Challenges to Overcome

Despite his great record against Bangladesh, it won’t be easy for Kohli to score runs, as he is returning to Test cricket after an 8-month gap, and he hasn’t been a part of India’s domestic cricket setup since the Sri Lanka tour.

One of the challenges Kohli might face is his struggle against spinners, as seen in the last ODI series against Sri Lanka, which India lost 2-0. The Bangladesh team, coming off a historic win over Pakistan for the first time in international cricket, will undoubtedly aim to stop India’s run machine with their experienced spin bowlers, who performed incredibly well in Pakistan.

India’s squad for the 1st Test of the Bangladesh Test series:

Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.