India batting maestro Virat Kohli is known for his penchant for breaking records. On Sunday, the talismanic batter went on to script history, becoming the fastest to 25,000 runs in international cricket, shattering the previous record held by the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
King Kohli, Run Machine, Chase Master – Virat Kohli has earned all these epithets for his imperious batting performances over the years. While he hasn't been at his best in Test cricket for some time, the former India captain played a crucial part in India's victory against Australia in the second Test in Delhi during the weekend.
While he made a composed 44 in the first essay before being given out controversially, Virat Kohli looked good in the second innings as well as he joined Cheteshwar Pujara in the middle at a vital time for the hosts.
After India lost the wicket of captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Cheteshwar Pujara needed to stitch a partnership to take them closer to their target of 115.
Virat Kohli did help India in this regard as he and Cheteshwar Pujara were engaged in a stand of 30 before the former lost his wicket to Australian off-spinner Todd Murphy. Though Virat Kohli only made 20 runs off 31 balls, it was a crucial knock in the context of the match.
On a deteriorating Day 3 pitch at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Virat Kohli's short knock was worth gold because as long as he was there at the crease, he looked assured and batted with a lot of comfort and composure.
In the process, Virat Kohli became the second Indian cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar to complete 25,000 runs on the international stage. However, Virat Kohli required lesser knocks when compared to Sachin Tendulkar to get to the landmark.
During his illustrious career from 1989 to 2013, Sachin Tendulkar accomplished the milestone of 25,000 runs in 577 knocks. On the contrary, Virat Kohli achieved the feat in 549 innings.
Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar are followed by ex-Australia captain Ricky Ponting and former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis, in the list. While Ricky Ponting unlocked 25 thousand runs in 588 knocks, Jacques Kallis completed the milestone in 594 essays. Occupying the fifth and sixth spots in the elite group are Sri Lankan legends Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, who took 608 and 701 knocks, respectively, to make 25k runs.
With Virat Kohli scripting another world record, netizens hailed him on social media, with several labeling him the greatest all-format player in the world.
Virat Kohli – The GOAT. pic.twitter.com/othrTypwiR
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 19, 2023
2️⃣5️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ runs – The fastest to reach another milestone, yet again! 🤌
📸: BCCI #PlayBold #TeamIndia #INDvAUS #BGT2023 #ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/EGAWZQqgiZ
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) February 19, 2023
Virat Kohli scored 22k runs in 2020, it took more than 2 years to score 3K runs across formats & still this man is the fastest to reach 25K runs.
In a league of his own🔥🐐 pic.twitter.com/8BhNRfw2oU— Pari (@BluntIndianGal) February 19, 2023
The greatest all format batsman in the history of Cricket 🐐 pic.twitter.com/Ly0HL0BG2a
— Cricket Crazy (@CrazyinCricket) February 19, 2023
Same day, same man, just another milestone! 🔥#ViratKohli #INDvAUS #BorderGavaskarTrophy pic.twitter.com/N5N9jIBRBn
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) February 19, 2023
Speaking about Virat Kohli's overall Test record, the Delhi-born cricketer has mustered 8,195 runs at an average of 48.49 in 106 matches for India. He has made 27 centuries and 28 fifties in whites.
However, his dismal numbers in red-ball cricket have worried fans and former cricketers. Since 2020, Virat Kohli has scored 993 runs in 39 innings in Tests at a mediocre average of 26.13, including six half-centuries. Notably, his last hundred in the five-day version of the sport came in November 2019 against Bangladesh in Kolkata.
On the other hand, Virat Kohli has succeeded in changing his fortunes in white-ball cricket, in T20Is and ODIs in the last six months. He ended last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia as the tournament’s leading run-scorer and recently added three ODI centuries to his kitty.
In January, Virat Kohli broke a slew of world records during his masterful unbeaten 166-run-knock off 110 deliveries against Sri Lanka.
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.
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.
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