Tale of two Centurions

“It almost has to be a madness to be able to win away from home and you have to live it every minute, every day of being on tour. It is a very individual thing but we need to discuss this as a team, for sure.”
These had been Virat Kohli’s phrases at Centurion in January 2018. India had simply misplaced the second Test in opposition to South Africa by 135 runs, and with it, the three-match collection after their 72-run defeat in Cape Town.
“It will go down as one of the greatest years in Indian cricket history, especially in Test cricket. The victories have taken a lot of discipline. We have worked really hard as a team for the last few years and we are slowly starting to see the results.”
These had been KL Rahul’s phrases at Centurion in December 2021. India had begun the yr with the grandmother of all comebacks on one leg on the Australian fortress of Brisbane. They would finish the yr by turning into the primary Asian group to win a Test on the South African fortress of Centurion. In between, they might mount profitable raids on these honored citadels of English cricket – Lord’s and The Oval.

Scenes from Centurion 👌https://t.co/Z3MPyesSeZ goes behind the scenes publish #GroupIndia‘s historic win at SuperSport Park 🏟️🙌
Full video arising quickly 📽️ – Stay tuned ⏳#SAvIND pic.twitter.com/oKyGhm0MxF
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 30, 2021

Four years in the past, all of this might have been unthinkable besides, in fact, inside Kohli’s thoughts, the place the “madness to win away” had taken robust roots way back. Imagine telling the world proper after one had been humbled 0-2 in a spot one wished to win desperately in that “we have to believe that we are the best side.” (Kohli would revisit this line later that yr in England, even after a 1-4 scoreline, throughout a heated alternate with a reporter on the post-match presser at The Oval)
But the remainder of the world would select to deal with extra instant issues as a substitute of the captain’s lofty imaginative and prescient, which was nonetheless considerably nebulous for these on the surface by way of how it might be truly executed.
Several occasions throughout the post-match press convention at Centurion 2018, Kohli would lose his cool. Like when he was requested whether or not he had performed his greatest XI (An XI that had no place for then vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane in each Cape Town and Centurion. An XI that had no place in Centurion for Bhuvneshwar Kumar after he had taken six wickets in Cape Town). “You tell me the best XI, we will play that,” Kohli had snapped. Or when he was requested why he by no means performed the identical group in consecutive video games.

Eventually, it got here all the way down to Kohli pointing to South Africa’s file on their earlier journey to India in 2015-16. “How many times did South Africa come into the game in India? Coming close to winning games in India? Can you count?”
That was straight from the playbook of the primary a part of that decade, when Indian sides saved getting whitewashed abroad and saved threatening to return the favour when their hosts would go to India.
Burning ambition
And that was actually not how Kohli wished to play his cricket. Sure, he wished to hammer visiting sides on raging turners at dwelling – he nonetheless does that — however he additionally wished to develop a facet that might win on inexperienced tops overseas.
“We need to be hard on ourselves… the mistakes that we have made… not paying attention to detail at important stages of the game is something we need to discuss as a team,” Kohli had mentioned.
He would repeatedly ask for 120 per cent or 150 per cent or 200 per cent effort from his gamers. A mere 100 wouldn’t do.

A giant victory for #GroupIndia within the 1st Test.
Scorecard – https://t.co/eoM8MqSQgO #SAvIND pic.twitter.com/lRWDCAalIZ
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 30, 2021
The potential was fairly seen certainly, because the very subsequent match after Centurion, at Wanderers, would affirm, with a memorable win on a brutal pitch. Or the win at Trent Bridge over England a number of months later. But the large prize – a collection win – would nonetheless be removed from their grasp. A foul session with bat or ball, and it might all slip away.
We are getting near the road however are but to discover ways to truly get throughout, Kohli would admit after England 2018 was misplaced in Southampton. The line could be lastly, and decisively, crossed in Australia in 2018-19.

It was South Africa that had been the place to begin of India’s abroad tour cycles in 2013-14 and 2017-18. Kohli has spoken of how the Wanderers victory turned the springboard for his group’s ambitions, culminating in India’s first-ever collection win in Australia.
That has been adopted by what was virtually an India ‘B’ facet looting the financial institution at Brisbane 2021, and a 2-1 collection lead in England.

🗣️🗣️ “2021 has been a special year for us.”
Vice-captain @klrahul11 sums up 2021 for #GroupIndia and speaks in regards to the historic win at Centurion👍#SAvIND pic.twitter.com/B9glXK36Xe
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 30, 2021
It is becoming then that this abroad cycle ends in South Africa. And particularly that the final leg has begun in Centurion, the place the fruit of failure had sown the seeds of success, because it has turned out within the four-year interval.
How far Indian cricket has are available in that interval is obvious in Rahul’s response on Thursday when requested whether or not he thought of himself lucky to not need to face the Indian quick bowlers in a Test match.
“It is harder facing them in the nets, it is not something some of us batsmen enjoy,” mentioned Centurion 2021’s Player of the Match. “They keep us scared and do not treat us as teammates. They are very competitive athletes. We are very lucky to have such quality.”
Perhaps that insanity to win away from dwelling has additionally created its personal luck within the span between the 2 Centurions. It has additionally created larger expectations, and nothing lower than a collection win within the ‘final frontier’ will do now. Wanderers 2022 to raised Wanderers 2018? Who would have thought?