Stupid to compare Kohli and AB's great tons; partners at other end decided the winner

ON A HOT DAY in Chennai, two of the greatest modern-day batsmen in the world -- Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers -- put up a fine display of skill, temperament and class. Unfortunately, one of them had to end up on the losing side.

Comparing the two hundreds would not only be unfair to both players, but also meaningless, given the circumstances in which they were achieved. On one hand, a hungry Virat Kohli waited for the perfect opportunity to show why exactly he was the most dangerous Indian batsman. He did it when India needed him, he did at his favourite batting position. It was 'Vintage Kohli' all over again. On the other, if AB de Villiers hadn't batted the way he did whilst cramping to the extent of giving up, South Africa wouldn't even have come anywhere close to the Indian total. That they did with one batsman short in a stiff chase was commendable to say the least. 

But there was one major factor that worked in both, Kohli and India's favour. When Kohli walked out to bat, India were struggling at the top, with both Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma failing to get going. It was deja vu for India, who were almost heading towards a familiar batting failure. But this time, Kohli had the able support of Ajinkya Rahane, who has been in good touch despite being shuffled up and down the batting order. Rahane batted fluently with a settled Kohli and the duo strung a 104-run partnership to give India the much needed stability. 

Even as Rahane was dismissed in the 27th over when a change of bowling brought Dale Steyn back into the attack, Kohli was assured of a partner at the other end. Though, Suresh Raina would have been the last name on his mind, considering the left-hander's poor string of scores in the recent past (3,0,0). But it was Chepauk, the ground that has seen Raina pull off some of the most amazing matches for his IPL team, Chennai Super Kings. This was his chance to make it count.

And as it turned out, Raina, who seemed to have taken the advice of his captain, gave himself some time before pulling the trigger along with Kohli. Both batsmen added 127 runs for the fourth wicket and India were well on course for a big total. In the last three matches, India hadn't seen a single 100-run stand. On Thursday, there were two. Had Raina flopped yet again, there was still hope in Dhoni, and that is what kept Kohli going from one end. Had India been burdened by the fall of wickets, Kohli would have restricted his shots and minimized risks.

However, that wasn't the case with the Proteas captain, who was already under pressure without their best bowler and a handy all-rounder. Coming in at the loss of the two openers, de Villiers needed a steady partner at the other end. He would have hoped that Faf du Plessis stayed on longer. But Faf departed soon after, followed by David Miller and then Farhaan Behardien in quick succession. A limping de Villiers fought valiantly till he was finally dismissed for 112, and South Africa knew it was all over. The Indian spinners kept striking at regular intervals, not allowing the South Africans to stitch a match-winning partnership and this is where de Villiers lost the plot. While India had two 100-run stands, South Africa's highest was 56, between de Villiers and Behardien.

As Sunil Gavaskar aptly put it after the match:

"Kohli should definitely be praised for his stupendous knock in a must-win game, but it is important to recognize the contribution of Rahane and Raina in the middle order, who gave impetus to India's batting by scoring at a brisk pace."

This line correctly sums up the reason why India could win when the two greats, who are also team-mates in the IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore, put on a show that dazzled cricket lovers.