Virat Kohli was solely taking his first strides in Test cricket when India performed right here final in 2011, however Rahul Dravid, then a towering determine within the squad, knew he was a “special talent” set for an extended and profitable profession. In a video shared by the BCCI forward of the opening Test of the two-match collection, each Dravid, now the crew’s head coach, and senior batter Kohli reminisced concerning the recreation that occurred greater than 20 years in the past.

“When I came here in 2011, that was a very special occasion for this Island and for the ground here. To come back in a different capacity, to come here as a coach and bring a team here, Virat was the only one who was there when we came here in 2011,” Dravid stated.

“I remember it was Virat’s first Test series with the Indian team, he was this young kid who had done really well in One Day cricket and he was just finding his feet a little bit in Test cricket.

“But you possibly can see there was a particular expertise on the market and you possibly can see that he was going to be round for some time. How lengthy you possibly can by no means say so that you could be very pleased with his journey,” Dravid added.

Kohli recently took to Twitter to share a picture of himself with Dravid and expressed his gratitude for the reunion after 12 years.

Dravid said, “I definitely by no means thought that I might coach and are available right here 10 years later, however it’s good to have seen his journey, see him develop from being a younger participant on that journey to now being a senior veteran.

“I shouldn’t call him a veteran, but a senior player on the trip. It is great to see his journey and I think of myself as someone who is a young coach starting a journey as well. So, the tables have turned a little bit (laughs).” Kohli stated he’s blessed to be one of many two survivors from that squad of 2011 and stated he might by no means think about that he could be again the place it began type him within the recreation’s conventional format.

“When we went to the dressing room and when we went to practice, I kind of remembered my first series here as a Test player and this is the country where it all started, the Caribbean.

“It is simply wonderful to have the ability to come again right here 12 years later having performed greater than 100 Test matches, I might by no means have imagined something like this.

“I think his (Dravid’s) comment about being a youngster in his coaching career is quite a humble one because he has been coaching for a long period of time now. I was his teammate and he was a senior, established Test player who we all looked up to.” The batting maestro stated life has come a full circle for each.

“It is quite amazing actually I told Rahul bhai as well. I said I am sure you would have never imagined that 12 years later we will come back to the same venue and you would be head coach and I would have played more than 100 games.

“No one might have guessed that one. We are blessed that we’re the one two members from the final journey, nonetheless right here in numerous capacities however it’s like life has come a full circle and the journeys have been fairly wonderful,” Kohli said.