India talisman Virat Kohli surpassed Universe Boss Chris Gayle to occupy the second spot in the list of batters who have scored the most runs in T20 World Cups. Virat Kohli who made a scintillating 82 not out off 53 balls to secure the Indian cricket team's sensational victory over Pakistan in their tournament opener on Sunday, carried his red-hot form on Thursday as he smacked an unbeaten 44-ball 62 against the Netherlands at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Virat Kohli now has 989 runs in 23 T20 World Cup Games and needs only 11 runs to become just the second man after Sri Lankan great Mahela Jayawardene to score 1000 runs in the prestigious competition.

While Mahela Jayawardene accumulated 1016 runs in 31 matches, Chris Gayle went on to compile a total of 965 runs in 33 games.

MOST RUNS IN T20 WORLD CUPS

Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) – 1016 runs in 31 matches
Virat Kohli (India) – 989 runs in 23 matches
Chris Gayle (West Indies) – 965 runs in 33 matches
Rohit Sharma (India) – 904 runs in 35 matches
Tilakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka) – 897 runs in 35 matches

In addition to going past Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli also broke Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar‘s record for the most number of fifties in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) nations by an India batter.

It was Virat Kohli's 49th half-century in these countries while Sachin Tendulkar ended his career with 48 fifties in South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia.

Virat Kohli is yet to get out in the current edition of the T20 World Cup in Australia. He has already taken his tally of runs to 144 in 2 matches.

His record-breaking feat against the Netherlands once again earned him praise on social media with several Indian supporters going gaga about his performance on Twitter.

Earlier on Thursday, India captain Rohit Sharma made history as he broke the legendary Yuvraj Singh's record for the most sixes by an Indian in T20 World Cup history.

Rohit Sharma went past Yuvraj Singh after he smashed three maximums during his knock of 53 off 39 balls during India's Super 12 match against the Netherlands at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Before the match against the Dutch side, Rohit Sharma was sitting at 31 sixes while Yuvraj Singh's tally read 33. However, Rohit Sharma now has 34 sixes – one more than Yuvraj Singh in the prestigious tournament.

It is pertinent to note that this wasn't the only record, Rohit Sharma created against the Netherlands in Sydney as he also became the joint-most capped player in the T20 World Cup, joining Sri Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top of the list.

The match against the Netherlands was Rohit Sharma's 35th appearance in the prestigious ICC event, putting him on par with Tillakaratne Dilshan regarding matches in the competition.

The Nagpur-born cricketer is the only Indian player who has participated in every edition of the T20 World Cup since the elite event made its debut in South Africa in 2007.

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Meanwhile, Suryakumar Yadav who blasted the fourth-quickest fifty by an Indian in the history of the T20 World Cup against the Netherlands credited Virat Kohli's presence in the middle for his ever-improving numbers for India in the shortest format.

“Batting at four, there are two situations, one in which the team has lost early wickets and scored less or has scored a lot and lost some wickets. In the first instance we need to stabilise and then I have to chase a tempo, in the second I have to be in that tempo immediately, either way getting to that tempo of scoring is important,” Suryakumar Yadav said while picking up the Man of the Match award at the post-match press conference.

“I was just trying to express myself when I went into bat. The situation was very simple, I just had to up the tempo at that time. I took one ball today (to get going), but the message was loud and clear. We had to get about 8-10 an over and get a total which our bowlers could defend easily. Very happy with the way things went. Really enjoying batting with him (Kohli), the thoughts are very clear when we both are batting. If I get few boundaries earlier then our partnership needs to be stretched and that’s what we are doing,” he added.

“We respect each other and have a camaraderie and plus he will give inputs like what delivery is the bowler likely to bowl and batting with him also means that you got to run hard. I look forward to more partnerships with him,” Suryakumar Yadav said about his blossoming on-field friendship with India talisman Virat Kohli.

Suryakumar Yadav smashed a whirlwind unbeaten 51 off 25 balls at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

The other names ahead of him on the list are Yuvraj Singh, and KL Rahul.

Yuvraj Singh, in fact, holds the world record for the fastest fifty in any format of the game, having slammed a 12-ball half-century against England in the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007.

KL Rahul, on the other hand, smashed a fifty off 18 deliveries against Scotland in the same tournament held in the UAE last year.

Yuvraj Singh also has a 20-ball fifty to his name in the T20 World Cup when made 70 off 30 balls against Australia in 2007.