Ravindra, a Bengaluru-born cricketer with New Zealand roots, celebrates a special Ton

Rachin Ravindra, a New Zealander, pumped his hands and smiled to acknowledge the applause that followed the 100-run he scored in the first Test against India. Bengaluru's fans cheered him on like he were one of them.

The 24-year old had every right to bask in the praise after nearly single-handedly defeating India with his knock of just 134. He helped New Zealand score 402 and a 356-point lead after they smashed the hosts by 46 runs on Thursday.

It was a rare moment of emotion for the normally reserved Ravindra. His 137-run stand with Tim Southee, who had threatened to steal the game from India, before India reached 231-3 by stumps, was an emotional display.

"Very uncharacteristic," Ravindra said to reporters after his effervescent party when he swept Ravichandran Ashwin to reach his ton.

"I don’t know, I don’t fist-pump often, but I suppose scoring an overseas hundred in India is always nice, but also, in the context of that, we had already lost a few bowlers and we built up a pretty awesome partnership.

"To me, that was special. More than just the achievement but to be able to share it with my teammate Timmy when the game was in the balance really meant a great deal. It felt good to do so."

The mop-haired, left-handed cricketer was born in Wellington but his parents are from Bengaluru. He became a crowd favourite in India after playing for the Black Caps at the 50-overs World Cup last year and for Chennai this season in the Indian Premier League.

Ravindra said that it was a special moment for him to reach his 100th with his father watching on.

"It's massive. Ravindra stated that a lot of his family members watched the match at the stadium as well as at home.

"I know that they are very proud, and I'm happy they got to see a relative perform in their hometown. It's really cool. I'm sure my parents will be proud.

"I am 100% Kiwi, but I'm happy to have Indian heritage in Bengaluru."

Ravindra said that his familiarity with conditions helped him to handle pressure. He scored 108 runs against Pakistan on the M Chinnaswamy Stadium during the World Cup last year.

Ravindra said, "It has definitely calmed the nerves."

You'll always be nervous, especially when playing in India against India. "But having had success here in India before definitely helped me." (Reporting and editing by Ken Ferris in Bengaluru, Shrivathsa Shridhar from Bengaluru)

(source: Reuters)