cricket

Updated: Mar 03, 2019 10:39 IST

India captain Virat Kohli has added a fresh feather into his already illustrious cap as he surpassed legendary West Indies cricketer Viv Richard’s captaincy record after the ‘Men in Blue’ recorded a comfortable win in the first ODI against Australia in Hyderabad on Saturday.

India beat Australia by six wickets courtesy of an unbeaten 141-run stand between Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav. This after the bowlers had restricted the visitors to 236/5 in 50 overs.

Also Read: MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav join elite list after match-winning stand in Hyderabad

This was Kohli’s 48th ODI win as captain of the side in 64 matches and in the process the Indian skipper went past Richard’s tally (47). Despite going past Richards, Kohli stands third on this particular list as former greats Ricky Ponting (51 wins) and Clive Llyod (50 wins) lead the way with more wins after the said matches as captain.

After the end of the match, Kohli heaped praise on the bowlers despite the match-winning stand between Dhoni and Jadhav. Mohammed Shami (2/44) and Kuldeep Yadav (2/46) scalped two wickets each and Kohli said India’s bowling performance augurs well for the team as they head to the World Cup in a few months’ time.

“It was a difficult sort of a game. We did a good job with the ball. You have experience with MS and flair with Kedar. I think Kedar and MS took responsibility, it was great. I think the bowling (won the game for us),” Kohli said.

Also Read: Captain backed me in my tough phase, it’s payback time now – Kedar Jadhav

“Kuldeep’s been doing it for a while. I have never seen him (Shami) so lean. Got Maxi out with a beautiful ball. I haven’t seen him so hungrier. Heading into the World Cup, it’s a great sign for India.”

On Ravindra Jadeja, who bowled two miserly spells to keep the visitors under tight leash, Kohli said: “Ten overs for less than 35 is a great job on this pitch. He set his fields on his game. He is a great asset in the field too.”

((With agency inputs))