Star batter Virat Kohli has arrived in Pune to link up with the Indian cricket squad ahead of the second Test against New Zealand, set to start on October 24 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
Following the first Test in Bengaluru, Kohli flew directly to Mumbai to spend time with his family. Most players arrived in Pune on October 21, but the 35-year-old opted to stay in Mumbai, where he was spotted attending a Krishna Das Kirtan with his wife, Anushka Sharma, on October 20.
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In the first Test, Kohli faced a tough outing, scoring a duck in the first innings. However, he bounced back in the second innings, scoring 70 runs off 102 balls, which included eight boundaries and one six. This performance made him the fourth Indian cricketer to reach the milestone of 9,000 Test runs. Kohli now has 9,017 runs in 116 Tests, averaging 48.74, with 31 fifties and 29 centuries.
New Zealand defeated India by eight wickets in the first Test. The hosts struggled in their first innings, posting only 46 runs—their third-lowest total in Test history. In response, Devon Conway scored 91 runs, while Rachin Ravindra's impressive 134 and Tim Southee's 65 helped New Zealand reach 402, establishing a 356-run lead.
Despite fifties from Rohit Sharma (52) and Kohli, along with Sarfaraz Khan’s maiden century (150) and Rishabh Pant’s near century (99), India managed 462 runs in their second innings. New Zealand chased down the target of 107 runs comfortably, led by Will Young (48*) and Ravindra (39*).
