IND vs SL 1st ODI: 'Need to thank God on such evenings', Virat Kohli after 45th ODI century

India's rejuvenated run machine Virat Kohli who scored his 45th ODI century against Sri Lanka in the 1st ODI made the most of the 2 lifelines that he got during the game.

Kohli who went on to smash a terrific 113 off 87 got 2 reprieves, one when he was at 52 and another at 81, thanked his stars, for they were in his favour on Tuesday evening.

During the innings break presentation, the ex-Indian skipper who now has 73 centuries to his name, said, 'Luck plays a big part, you need to thank God on such evenings'.

While he was glad that he stood in good stead, he was mostly delighted for keeping his strike rate in check throughout. 'I was happy I was able to maintain the tempo and we finished with 370', he added.

India lead the 3-match ODI series 1-0 after the brilliant 67-run win in their first ODI against Sri Lanka.