In the absence of the injured Yuvraj, Kohli got a chance to play in the 4th ODI when Sri Lanka toured India in December 2009. He scored his first ODI century, milking singles with
Gautam Gambhir with whom he shared a 224-run partnership for the third wicket as India won by seven wickets to seal the series 3–1.
Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar was rested for the tri-nations tournament in Bangladesh in January 2010 which enabled Kohli to play in each of India's five matches. After making nine in the opening loss to Sri Lanka, he top-scored with 91 to help secure a win after India collapsed early in their run chase against Bangladesh on 7 January 2010. He then ended unbeaten on 71 to help win the match for India with a bonus point after they chased down their target quickly. The next day, he scored his second ODI century, against Bangladesh, bringing up the mark with the winning runs. He was much praised for his performances during the tournament, and became only the third Indian to score two ODI centuries before their 22nd birthday, following the footsteps of Tendulkar and
Suresh Raina.
[16] However, in the final against Sri Lanka, he made only two as India collapsed to 5/60 and an eventual four-wicket defeat.
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