New Zealand national cricket team’s batting all-rounder Rachin Ravindra, 24, has claimed that Indian national cricket team’s batting superstar Virat Kohli punished the Kiwis with his impressive batting performance in the first test.

Rachin’s comments came after Kohli smashed a fantastic half-century against the BlackCaps at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Day 3 of the first match of the Test series.

Virat Kohli is obviously a great player, he punished us but – Rachin Ravindra

After taking a duck in the first innings while batting at number 3 after 8 years in Test cricket, Kohli redeemed himself with an impressive fifty in the second innings.

He came out to bat after the dismissal of Yashasvi Jaiswal and formed a crucial partnership with Sarfaraz Khan. Kohli went off the mark on his 15th ball, but once he settled in, he looked incredible in the middle.

The way he was batting, Virat Kohli looked set for a century. However, he was dismissed by Glenn Phillips on the last ball of Day 3, breaking the hearts of the Indian dressing room and the fans.

Kohli took a long walk back to the pavilion after scoring 70 runs off 102 balls. His innings were packed with 8 fours and 1 six.

Meanwhile, New Zealand sensation Rachin Ravindra spoke to the announcers after the end of Day 3 play and said that Virat Kohli punished his team but claimed that they still have plenty of runs on the board to play for. He said:

“Virat is obviously a great player, he punished us but we still have a lot of runs to play.”

I was just trying to build partnerships – Rachin Ravindra

Rachin Ravindra batted brilliantly in New Zealand’s first innings and frustrated the Indian bowlers. He smashed a brilliant ton and finished with a score of 134 runs off 157 balls.

Ravindra’s stellar batting ensured New Zealand took a huge first innings lead, posting 402 runs on the board after bowling out India for 46 runs on Day 2.

Rachin Ravindra also spoke about his sensational 137-run partnership with Tim Southee and said that they were very clear about what they had to do. He stated:

“I was just trying to build partnerships. That partnership with Tim (Southee) really helped me; the goal was clear and we knew what we had to do.”

It’s a lovely wicket to bat on – Rachin Ravindra

Rachin Ravindra further said that he enjoyed playing on the Chinnaswamy surface as it was a good pitch for batting and expressed his delight at his father’s presence in the stands during the first Test. He elaborated:

“(In Bengaluru) It’s a bit comforting even though the wicket is completely different, it’s nice to get to know the surroundings. It’s a lovely wicket to bat on. It’s not really superstitious.

“It’s great to have him (his father) here, it’s his hometown and I have some family here too. There’s a great crowd here too. In fact, I took the whole (ticket allocation) booklet with me.”

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