Padma Shri Awardee Sudarsan Pattnaik Dedicates Sand Art To Kohli

Padma Shri Awardee sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik dedicated a sand art to Virat Kohli after he announced retirement from test cricket on Monday. The sand art was made with a replica of 14 bats to express gratitude.

“Virat Kohli has announced retirement from test cricket…His contribution to the nation, world, and cricket is unimaginable. We have created a sand art with a replica of 14 bats to express our gratitude to him,” Sudarsan Pattnaik told ANI on Tuesday.

Virat Kohli draws the curtain on a glorious Test career; the numbers he leaves behind are a testament to his stature as one of the modern greats in the longest format. From home dominance to overseas grit, Kohli’s red-ball career was a masterclass in skill, determination, and consistency.

In 123 Tests, Kohli compiled 9,230 runs, including 30 centuries and 31 fifties, finishing as one of India’s most prolific and influential Test cricketers. Here’s a closer look at his record, team by team and venue by venue, as we pay tribute to a glittering red-ball career.

In Indian conditions, Kohli played 55 Test matches and scored 4,336 runs, including 14 centuries and 13 half-centuries. His highest Test score also came at home, a commanding 254* against South Africa in Pune in 2019.

Whether it was spin-friendly turners or flat batting tracks, Kohli’s control and hunger for big scores made him a giant in home Tests. Kohli’s most frequent Test opponent was Australia. Across 30 matches, he amassed 2,232 runs, notching up nine centuries and five fifties.

His highest score against the Aussies was 186.In Australia, he featured in 18 matches, scoring 1,542 runs, including seven centuries and four fifties, a staggering record given the challenges of playing on bouncy, pace-friendly pitches.

His top score Down Under stands at 169, underlining his remarkable adaptability. Against England, Kohli played in 28 Tests, scoring 1,991 runs, five hundreds, and nine fifties. His personal best against them was 235, which came at the Wankhede in 2016 during a dominant home series.

In England, he had struggled generally, but he compiled 1,096 runs in 17 matches, including two centuries and five half-centuries. His highest score on English soil was 149, a career-defining knock at Edgbaston that silenced his critics. (ANI)