You Made Me Wait For A Long Time...: Rahul Dravid Takes Cheeky Dig At Virat Kohli As He Scores Test Ton After 1205 Days

BCCI

Scoring his 28th Test century in the fourth Test match of the India-Australia series at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium, Virat Kohli provided relief not only to himself but also to millions of cricket fans worldwide. This was his first century in the longest format of the game since November 2019 when he achieved the triple-figure mark in a pink-ball Test match against Bangladesh at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.

A conversation full of calmness, respect & inspiration written all over it! _ _

A special post series-win chat with #TeamIndia Head Coach Rahul Dravid & @imVkohli at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad _ _ - By @RajalArora

FULL INTERVIEW _ #INDvAUShttps://t.co/nF0XfltRg2 pic.twitter.com/iHU1jZ1CKG

— BCCI (@BCCI) March 14, 2023

"You made me wait for a long time since I became the coach. But what a beauty and it was an absolute privilege to watch the way you constructed your innings," Dravid told Kohli at the start of an interaction on BCCI. TV.

"Thanks for your kind words Rahul bhai. As far as approaching this inning is concerned. I knew that I was playing well even in the test matches before we played this one. To be fair, it was a really good wicket to bat on," Kohli replied.

Rahul Dravid was among those overjoyed by Kohli's accomplishment, having witnessed the Indian batting superstar achieve the milestone for the first time since he took over as head coach of the Indian team in November 2021. Dravid made a playful remark to Kohli, highlighting the long wait.

"But having said that I think the Australian whatever the little help was there in the wicket I think they utilised it really well. Their consistency to bowl in the little rough was created through Mitchell Starc’s bowling for Nathan Lyon and the other off-spinner (Todd Murphy) as well. They capitalised on it really well. The fact that they put 7-2 field most of the time for me. It meant that I have to be patient and trust my defence and that’s the template I have already played with in Test cricket," said the former Indian captain.

"The boundaries were not easy to come by, to be honest. The outfield was slow, the ball was soft and they were pretty consistent. One that really calmed me down as I am happy to just run ones and twos and score a hundred.

During their conversation, Kohli spoke in detail about his innings and praised the Australian bowling attack for making things difficult for India on a pitch with minimal support for bowlers. He also explained how Steve Smith's field setup complicated the run-scoring process.

"I am pretty happy scoring 30 runs in a session and not hitting a boundary and absolutely not be desperate because I know that boundaries will come and even if I have to play like this I can bat six sessions and get a 150. I have no issue doing that. Just the preparation paid off and it’s a constant process and it is not something that you do for two months and three months I have been doing this for seven-eight years non-stop every day of my life," Kohli explained his approach behind the stunning knock of 186.