Virat Kohli was in the limelight on the first day of the Boxing Day Test for the wrong reasons. He had a heated altercation with young Sam Konstas with a shoulder barrage. However, the 36-year-old star cricketer won hearts with his lovely gesture on the second day of the match in Melbourne.
Steve Smith completed his 34th Test hundred on the second day when he drove Nitish Kumar Reddy through the roof for a four. After Smith reached the milestone, Kohli applauded him for his magnificent innings. With this hundred, Smith equaled the great ca Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Younis Khan and Mahela Jayawardene regarding the no. hundreds of Test.
Smith soaked in the applause of a huge crowd at the MCG after reaching his ton as Virat Kohli waited patiently. After some time, he walked past Smith and patted him on the back as the latter continued to celebrate his hard-earned moment.
Read also: Australia dropped replacement Mitchell Marsh from the squad midway through the MCG Test
Watch: Virat Kohli wins hearts with his brilliant gesture for Steve Smith
Steve Smith Test hundred, number 34!
He also brings it in style 🙌#AUSWIN pic.twitter.com/jRjwC6bdIZ
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) December 27, 2024
Not only Virat Kohli but also KL Rahul was seen cheering and applauding his wonderful innings. Moments later, Smith's batting partner Pat Cummins joined the celebration and hugged him as Smith embraced to the applause of a packed house at the MCG.
The bond between Virat Kohli and Steve Smith
Both Virat Kohli and Steve Smith have known each other since childhood. Both were part of the 2008 Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia, when Kohli made a name for himself by leading India to a title win.
However, both players were also involved in a heated battle. During a Test series played in India, Kohli had accused Smith and the Australian team of cheating by looking at the dressing room to ask for a review.
But their bond has turned into a mature friendship in recent years. Kohli did a wonderful gesture for Smith in the 2019 ODI World Cup when the crowd booed him for the infamous Sandpaper wicket incident in 2018.
Kohli asked the crowd not to boo Smith, which was appreciated by him later. Kohli even won the ICC Fair Play Award for his gesture which was well applauded by the entire cricketing world. Since then, both players have shared a wonderful respect and camaraderie for each other.
Steve Smith scored his 34th Test hundred
Meanwhile, Steve Smith scored his second consecutive Boxing Day Test hundred. Smith looked in terrific form in the match and single-handedly took Australia into an ascendant position.
The right-hander showed why he is regarded as one of the best Test cricketers as he played flawlessly in every situation. Australia were 311-6 and in danger of being bowled out for less than 400. But Smith batted superbly with the tail and continued to frustrate the Indian bowlers on Day 2.
Steve Smith scored 140 off 197 balls in a wonderful display of batting. He hit 13 fours and 3 sixes during his knock. The crowd was on its feet after this excellent batting performance from one of Australia's greats.