Shane Warne hails Virat Kohli for 'Spirit of Cricket' gesture towards Joe Root

MELBOURNE: Former Australia spinner Shane Warne has hailed Virat Kohli for his 'Spirit of Cricket' gesture towards England skipper Joe Root in the ongoing first Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

"Love this !!!! Well done @imVkohli and congrats to @root6 on another wonderful innings #SpiritOfCricket," Warne tweeted.

Love this !!!! Well done @imVkohli and congrats to @root66 on another wonderful innings #SpiritOfCricket pic.twitter.com/hUBFZfoZ9X

— Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) February 7, 2021

Kohli's heartwarming gesture towards England captain Root just before the concluding minutes of the play on day one of the opening Test took the internet by storm.

After smashing a six off Ravichandran Ashwin's last ball of the 87th over Root went down on the floor with a cramp. England physio was out to help the skipper but before he reached, it was India captain Kohli who helped Root with stretching of his right leg.

In the ongoing first Test, England has managed to gain an upper hand after restricting India to 257/6 on the third day. The hosts still trail England by 321 runs. For the hosts, Washington Sundar and Ravichandran Ashwin are still at the crease.

On Saturday, Root added another feather to his illustrious cap as he became the first batsman in the history of Test cricket to score a double century in his 100th Test.

Root achieved the feat in the first Test against India at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday. During the course of this innings, Root also registered the highest score for a player playing in his 100th Test.

Root broke the record of former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq to achieve this feat. He also surpassed Mike Gatting (207) to post the highest individual score for an English batsman in India. Root has now scored five double centuries in Test cricket; only Wally Hammond has posted more for England (7).

After the play started on day three, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravichandran Ashwin picked one wicket each as England was bowled out for 578. Bumrah and Ashwin finished with three wickets each while Root was the top-scorer for England as he played a knock of 218.