India’s Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 139 in the run chase of 297 against West Indies in the ODI series opener on September 28. Kohli and captain Shubman Gill scored centuries as they made the run chase look like a cakewalk at Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram. While left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav was named ‘Player of the match’ for his four-wicket haul, pacer Prasidh Krishna termed Kohli’s knock of 139 as ‘unbelievable’. While sitting in the dressing room, the fast bowler wondered how would he bowl to him at the moment considering the way he was hitting the ball to all corners of the park.
"It was unbelievable. Sitting outside we were thinking, what do we bowl to him at that moment? He was striking the ball really, really well. All of us have grown up watching Virat Kohli and to see him do what he did today was unbelievable. I think all of us were excited about it," Prasidh said of Kohli's innings in the post-match press conference.
However, Krishna won’t have to worry about bowling to Kohli until the next year’s Indian Premier League (IPL). The last time they went up against each other was in the IPL 2026 final where Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) beat Gujarat Titans (GT) to claim their second title on the trot.
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Kohli had suffered a hamstring injury in the IPL 2026 final and missed the ODI series against Afghanistan at home. After a single-digit score, he had scored two consecutive half-centuries in the ODI series against England.
Kohli goes on a six-hitting spree
The 37-year-old pushed his scoring rate in the run chase against West Indies. He admitted that he has found a new version of himself at this stage of the career. From 88 balls he faced, he smashed nine sixes and 10 fours. This is the most number of sixes Kohli has hit in an ODI innings. His strike rate was 157.95 meeting the demands of the modern-day ODI format.
This was Kohli’s 10th ODI century against West Indies. Also, he completed 15,000 runs in ODI cricket.
How Krishna performed in 1st ODI
In the absence of pace-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, Krishna played ahead of Mohammed Siraj. He was wicketless with the new ball. In the middle overs, he dismissed Keacy Carty. In the slog overs, he knocked over Roston Chase, helping India restrict West Indies to 295/7. He bowled 10 overs, conceded 60 runs and bagged two wickets.
The second ODI of the series will be played on September 30 at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati.