A Pakistan journalist who trolled Virat Kohli for scoring hundreds against “minnows” Sri Lanka got a befitting response from his own country's cricket star Sohaib Maqsood who asked him to “grow up” and respect the premier India batter for his record-breaking feats on the field.

“Virat Kohli is at his best when there's no pressure, series not on the line and conditions great for batting. There's no harm in gaining confidence and form in such matches, India need him to perform well in Test cricket with Australia coming over too tho,” the reporter named Farid Khan wrote on Twitter following the talismanic India batter's 46th ODI hundred against Sri Lanka last week.

To which, Sohaib Maqsood responded: “Are you sure he is only best when there is no pressure grow up yar two wrongs dont make one right.”

The scribe still didn't stop and tried to explain his point of view to Sohaib Maqsood.

“Sohaib bhai, for a player to regain confidence nothing helps more than favourable conditions. He had a lean patch but he needed a match against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup when India were not in the tournament and then against Bangladesh when they had lost the series already,” he tweeted.

Last Sunday, Virat Kohli broke a slew of world records during his masterful unbeaten 166-run-knock off 110 deliveries against the Dasun Shanaka-led side.

Unsurprisingly, Virat Kohli now has 20 Player of the Series awards to his name in international cricket, the same as Sachin Tendulkar. If we bifurcate their numbers further, Virat Kohli has claimed 3 Man of the Series trophies in Tests, 10 in ODIs, and 7 in T20Is.

Talking about the Little Master's figures, he grabbed 5 in red-ball cricket while the other 15 came in the 50-over format. He won none in T20Is.

With his 166 not out against the islanders, Virat Kohli now has the most unbeaten 150+ scores (5) in the history of ODIs.

The ton was his 21st at home in the second-longest format of the sport, taking him clear of Sachin Tendulkar's previous tally of 20.

During his sensational innings, Virat Kohli also overtook Sri Lanka legend Mahela Jayawardene to occupy the fifth spot among the highest run-getters in ODIs.

With 12,754 runs, Virat Kohli is now only behind Sachin Tendulkar (18,426), Kumar Sangakkara (14,234), Ricky Ponting (13,704), and Sanath Jayasuriya (13,430).

Virat Kohli also became the first non-opener to have 5 scores of more than 150+ in ODIs.

Moreover, Virat Kohli is the quickest to amass 46 centuries in ODI cricket – a milestone he achieved in just 259 innings. On the other hand, the previous record holder Sachin Tendulkar needed 431 innings to get there.

This was his 10th century against Sri Lanka, making him the first man to score that many tons against a single team in ODIs. Previously, Virat Kohli had made nine centuries each against Sri Lanka and West Indies, while Sachin Tendulkar had scored the same number of tons against Australia.

During his blistering knock in the capital of Kerala, Virat Kohli showed a different dimension of his batting prowess as he smashed eight sixes, including one that went as far as 97 meters. It is the most number of sixes the former India captain has slammed in during an ODI knock. Apart from eight hits over the fence, the Delhi-born cricketer's knock was laced with 13 boundaries.

A sublime Virat Kohli completed his hundred in 85 deliveries but immediately shifted gears after accomplishing the landmark. The 166 not out is his highest score at home and the second-highest in One-Day Internationals.

Virat Kohli has been in sensational nick of late. This was his third hundred in his last four games, including his 44th ODI hundred in December against Bangladesh, ending a nearly three-year drought in the format.

Meanwhile, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar backed Virat Kohli to equal/break Sachin Tendulkar’s world record of 49 ODI hundreds before the Indian Premier League starts this year.

Kohli, who needs three to equal and four to overtake Sachin Tendulkar’s record, will have six ODIs to accomplish the landmark with the Men in Blue set to play a three-match series against New Zealand and Australia each.

“The form that he is in, the way that he is playing right now…now we have three matches against New Zealand and three more against Australia. So we have six ODIs before IPL. And all he needs his three centuries. The way he is batting right now, why shouldn’t we feel that those three hundreds happen before the IPL,” Sunil Gavaskar told Sports Tak.

The series between India and New Zealand starts on January 18 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.