India batting maestro Virat Kohli scripted history on Tuesday as he became the first man to score at least nine centuries against two different teams in ODI cricket. Virat Kohli's unique feat came against Sri Lanka at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati after Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka opted to bowl first after winning the toss in the first ODI of the three-match series at home.

Virat Kohli came out at the crease after captain Rohit Sharma and his opening partner Shubman Gill gave India a blistering start with both men making fifties. The youngster Shubman Gill was the first to fall after scoring a quickfire 70 off 60 balls. Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, looked good to hit a hundred but played on to be dismissed for 83 off 67 deliveries.

Virat Kohli, meanwhile, began his innings in impressive fashion with a couple of straight drives for boundaries straight down the ground. Once Rohit Sharma left, the Delhi-born cricketer played the sheet anchor's role to perfection as he took singles and doubles and struck an odd boundary to keep the scoreboard ticking.

But once India neared the 300-run mark, Virat Kohli upped the tempo and subsequently brought up his 45th hundred in the 50-over format. It was the 34-year-old's second successive century in ODIs after he ended a three-year wait for a ton in the second shortest version of the game in Bangladesh last year.

In the process, Virat Kohli created multiple records. One of them was matching Sachin Tendulkar's record of making the most number of centuries on home soil. Both Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli now have 20 tons each in India.

The number of knocks Virat Kohli took to reach there though was far less compared to Sachin Tendulkar. While Little Master needed 160 innings to hit 20 hundreds in ODIs at home, the India No.3 accomplished the feat in only 99 knocks.

Moreover, with 9 centuries against both Sri Lanka and West Indies, Virat Kohli became the only cricketer to have that many three-figure scores against two international sides.

Previously, both Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar had 9 tons each against West Indies and Australia respectively. The legendary cricketers had collected 8 hundreds each against Sri Lanka as well. But with his heroics in Assam, Virat Kohli now stands alone in the list.

After failing to cross the hundred mark in over a thousand days, Virat Kohli has now made three tons in the last 4 months, beginning with his maiden T20I century against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup in the UAE in September. It was also Kohli's 73 ton in international cricket. He's only behind Sachin Tendulkar in terms of international hundreds. Tendulkar is the only cricketer to smash 100 hundreds on the global stage.

Virat Kohli's record –

Most ODI 100s vs a team:
9 Virat Kohli vs WI
9 Virat Kohli vs SL *
9 Sachin Tendulkar vs Aus
8 Rohit Sharma vs Aus
8 Virat Kohli vs Aus
8 Sachin Tendulkar vs SL

Kohli's extraordinary knock was hailed by his vast legion of supporters on social media. While some declared him the greatest of all time (GOAT), others were simply in awe of the talismanic India batter.

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Virat Kohli was extremely happy with his maiden knock of 2023 before revealing that he was confident of making a big score as he was striking the ball well in the nets.

King Kohli as his fans call him, also agreed that he was a bit lucky because Sri Lankan fielders gave him two opportunities – one each in his 50s and 80s, helping him immensely in his pursuit of another ODI century.

“I have had a bit of break, and a couple of practice sessions coming into this game, so I was fresh after that Bangladesh tour. I was excited for the home season to start. The openers allowed me to get into the game and I tried to keep my strike rate in check. I was happy I was able to maintain the tempo and we finished with 370,” Virat Kohli told the host broadcaster of the series, Star Sports, at the end of India's innings.

“I would take those (dropped chances) any day. Luck plays a big part, you need to thank god on such evenings. These evenings are important, pretty aware of that. Thankful that I made the most of that luck presented to me. I helped the team get 20 runs extra, rather than 350. It's going to be the same thing. Someone will have to score a 150, or 140 to chase this down. But it also gives our bowlers a chance to bowl with dew coming into play. I am quite aware of what I eat, diet is the most important thing at this age. That keeps me in prime shape. That helps me give my 100 percent for the team,” he added.