Captain Virat Kohli scored the first century of the series against New Zealand to steer India to 267 for three on the opening day of the third and final Test in Indore, on Saturday.
Kohli's 103 not out was not the most flamboyant of his 13 Test centuries but the 167 runs he added with Ajinkya Rahane for the fourth wicket laid the foundation for a big first-innings total for the hosts who hold an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.
- Scorecard
Statistical highlights of the first day's play:
22 Holkar Stadium has become the 22nd Test venue in India. The three Indian venues with most Tests are Eden Gardens, Kolkata (40), Feroz Shah Kotla (33) and Chepauk Chennai (31).
6 Virat Kohli (103 not out) has posted his sixth Test hundred as Indian skipper. He had scored three hundreds in his first three innings vs Australia -- 115 & 141 at Adelaide and 147 at Sydney, followed by one each vs Sri Lanka, West Indies and New Zealand.
3 In the first innings of a Test, Kohli has recorded three hundreds in Tests -- the first two being 200 vs West Indies at North Sound in July 2016 and 119 vs South Africa at Johannesburg in December 2013.
13 Kohli hit his 13 hundreds in Tests -- his third vs New Zealand. His first hundred as captain in Tests in India is his sixth. Just three Indian skippers have registered more hundreds than Kohli in Tests -- Sunil Gavaskar (11), Mohammad Azharuddin (9) and Sachin Tendulkar (7).
53 Kohli's average of 53.24 as captain is the highest among the Indian captains in Tests.
100 The last Indian skipper to hit a Test hundred vs New Zealand was Sourav Ganguly -- 100 not out at Ahmedabad in October 2003.
17 In his previous 17 innings at home, he was without a Test hundred.
36 Ajinkya Rahane (79 not out) has posted his tenth fifty in Tests -- his second vs New Zealand. He has also become the 36th Indian batsman to complete 2000 runs or more in Tests.
76 Rahane's performance in Tests this year is splendid -- his tally being 458 at an average of 76.33 in nine innings, including a hundred and three fifties. In terms of averages, the 2016 is his best calendar year in Tests.
458 Rahane's tally of 458 runs is the highest by an Indian batsman in Tests this year.
29 Gautam Gambhir, who made 29 on Day 1, took his aggregate to 998 in his last 20 Tests (35 innings) at an average of 28.51 including seven fifties.
10 Gambhir, in his last 10 Tests at home, has managed 533 runs at an average of 35.53, including four fifties, as compared to his overseas average of 23.25 -- 465 runs in 20 innings (10 Tests), including three fifties.
54 Cheteshwar Pujara, with 272 runs at an average of 54.40 in five innings, is the leading run-getter in the present series. He is the only batsman to hit three fifties in the present series. Pujara's aforesaid performance is his best ever in a three-Test series.
4 Rahane and Kohli have shared four century stand since they started playing Tests together. Only Cheteshwar Pujara and Murali Vijay, as a pair, have registered more century partnerships (five) in Tests for India since 2013.
3 Kohli and Rahane have shared an unbroken stand of 167 -- India's joint third highest vs New Zealand for the fourth wicket -- the highest being 281 between Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman at Ahmedabad in October/November 1999. This partnership is the highest by any pair in the present series, obliterating the 141 between Rahane and Pujara for the fourth wicket in the Kolkata Test.
57 Rahane and Kohli have managed 1381 runs at an average of 57.54 in 25 innings, including four century stands and seven fifty-plus, in Tests.
