The first Test between India and Sri Lanka, which begins on March 4 in Mohali, will be a special occasion for Virat Kohli. On Friday, the former India skipper will become the 12th Indian to play in 100 Test matches. The right-hander, who is now considered as one of the top batters in the game, has a chance to make the moment even more memorable. Kohli is only 38 runs short of completing 8000 runs in the game's longest format. He will become only the sixth Indian to achieve this feat, following the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag, and VVS Laxman on the list.

If Kohli scores the needed 38 runs in India's first innings, he will join Sachin Tendulkar (154 innings), Rahul Dravid (158 innings), Virender Sehwag (160 innings), and Sunil Gavaskar as the seventh fastest Indian to reach the milestone (166 innings). Kohli has batted in 168 innings so far.

The right-hander, on the other hand, is in desperate need of runs. In red-ball cricket, his recent performances have been the poorest of his relatively long career. He last hit an international century against Bangladesh in November of this year.

Kohli has scored just 208 runs at an average of 26.00 in his last five Tests at home in 2021, the lowest total in any calendar year at home. In eight innings, he has been dismissed three times for a duck. In 2021, a spinner is responsible for 75% of his dismissals (6/8). Off spinners and left arm spinners each have three.

Kohli, on the other hand, is likely to benefit from the respite he took between the final T20I against the West Indies and the three T20Is against Sri Lanka.

Kohli could be encouraged by his performance against Sri Lanka during their last Test series in India in 2017.