Watch: Virat Kohli pays tribute to Sehwag in typical Viru style

Watch: Virat Kohli pays tribute to Sehwag in typical Viru style: There has been a lot of debate about India’s batting order, especially about the crucial number 3 position. Virat Kohli decided to put an end to all speculations and gave a fitting reply to the team management who had unnecessarily kept switching the batting order.

The look in his eyes from the time he walked into bat suggested that he meant some serious business. The Proteas had managed to start well on a sluggish pitch which looked a difficult one to score freely on. Kohli arrived at the fall of the first wicket of Rohit and India on 28 off 4.5 overs. The first ball he played was flicked confidently off the stumps for a single which gave a glimpse of his decisive footwork.

When a batsman is short of runs, a tough innings, a grinding knock helps in getting back his belief. It seemed the previous knock did exactly this for Kohli who looked at his imperious best from the outset today. Singles, doubles and boundaries in the heat of Chennai kept pushing India’s scoring rate higher and higher. At the fall of Dhawan’s wicket India was 35/2 from 8 overs. Kohli knew a momentum shift was needed to put the pressure back on SA.

He did not let any bowler settle and stamped his authority on the match by bringing up his fifty in the 21st over, India’s score of 105/2 at this juncture indicated the impact he made. He celebrated aggressively by punching his chest with his left hand and raised his bat. The most incredible moment though was the big six that brought up his 23rd ODI ton.

Charging down the pitch he spanked the South African left-arm spinner, Aaron Phangiso, over long-on for a maximum. Something that was reminiscent of the recently retired Virender Sehwag’s ways. A special knock deserved a special celebration and the stylish right-hander, in a typical ‘Filmy’ moment, flexed his tattooed muscles before raising his bat to acknowledge the crowd and his cheering teammates. A celebration his young fans must have surely enjoyed.

Watch: Virat get his 23rd ODI ton in typical Sehwag style:

A century with a Six! Was that Virat's tribute to @virendersehwag? 4th @Paytm ODI #INDvsSAhttps://t.co/AnW7eWYOM7

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 22, 2015