The Indian batting maestro Virat Kohli played yet another sensational knock against the arch-rivals Pakistan during the ICC Champions Trophy Group A match in Dubai. Kohli smashed an unbeaten century to help the Pakistan team seal their price in the semi-finals of the ongoing tournament, with the hosts on the brink of a first-round exit from the tournament.
Virat Kohli broke several records with his stellar knock during the IND vs. PAK match. He became the fastest in ODI history to reach 14000 runs, surpassing the previous record set by the legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar.
The batting maestro needed 15 runs before the IND vs. PAK match to surpass Sachin, and he achieved the milestone with the stunning cover-drive for four off Haris Rauf. He achieved the feat in his 287th inning.
Virat Kohli Breaks Sachin Tendulkar’s Record
For the unversed, Sachin Tendulkar was the first batter to amass 14000 runs in the One-Day Internationals. He achieved the feat in 350 innings (359 ODIs). He retired from the game with 18,426 runs from 463 ODIs, which is the most by-batter in the format’s history.
Following Sachin Tendulkar, Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara was the second batter to achieve the feat. He reached the milestone in 378 innings (402 ODIs) and retired with 14,234 runs under his name in 404 ODIs. Talking about Virat Kohli, the King as his fans call him, made his ODI debut in 2008 and has so far played 299 ODIs. During the 2023 ODI World Cup, Virat broke Tendulkar’s longstanding record of most centuries in the format by hitting a record 50th hundred.
Top-10 highest run-getters in ODI history
| S. No | Player | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sachin Tendulkar | 463 | 452 | 18426 | 44.83 |
| 2 | Kumar Sangakkara | 404 | 380 | 14234 | 41.98 |
| 3 | Virat Kohli | 299* | 287 | 14000 | 57.8 |
| 4 | Ricky Ponting | 375 | 365 | 13704 | 42.03 |
| 5 | Sanath Jayasuriya | 445 | 433 | 13430 | 32.36 |
| 6 | Mahela Jayawardene | 448 | 418 | 12650 | 33.37 |
| 7 | Inzamam-ul-Haq | 378 | 350 | 11739 | 39.52 |
| 8 | Jacques Kallis | 328 | 314 | 11579 | 44.36 |
| 9 | Sourav Ganguly | 311 | 300 | 11363 | 41.02 |
| 10 | Rohit Sharma | 270 | 262 | 11049 | 48.88 |
Virat Kohli Explained His Strategy After His Powerful Knock Against Pakistan
Meanwhile, after helping the Men in Blue chase down the target of 242 runs with six wickets and nearly eight overs to spare, Virat Kohli credited his ability to keep the outside noise away that helped the Indian cricket team pull off one of the most memorable wins recently. Talking about his performance in the post-match conference, Virat Kohli said:
“To be honest, it feels good to be able to bat in that manner in an important game to seal qualification. Feels good to contribute in a game where we lost Rohit early, had to put in the understanding of what we learnt in the last game. My job was to control the middle overs against the spinners without taking too many risks, towards the end Shreyas accelerated and I got a few boundaries as well. It allowed me to play my usual ODI game,”
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“I have a decent understanding of my game, it is about keeping the outside noise away, staying in my space and taking care of my energy levels and thoughts. Very easy to get pulled into the expectations. My job is to stay in the present and do a job for the team. My keynotes to myself are to put my 100 per cent every ball in the field, and then God eventually rewards you. Having clarity is important, it was important to understand that you need to get runs when there is pace on the ball, otherwise the spinners can dictate things,” he added.
Rohit Sharma Hailed Virat Kohli’s Batting Exploits
The Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who slammed 20 off 15 balls and gave a stellar start to the Indian innings during the IND vs PAK match, also praised Virat Kohli’s sensational knock. Hailing him for his brilliance, Rohit Sharma said that the Indian dressing room was hardly surprised by Kohli’s batting exploits. Speaking during the post-match presentation ceremony, Rohit Sharma said:
“Virat loves representing the country, doing what he does the best, which is what he did today. People sitting inside the dressing room aren’t surprised with what he did,”
The Hitman also praised the Indian bowling line-up for restricting the Pakistan batters to a total less than 250 after they appeared destined for a 300-plus score at one point. Rohit said:
“We started superbly with the ball. We knew wicket could get slower but backed our experienced batters to go out there and get 240. Credit goes to Kuldeep, Axar, Jadeja al who have played a lot. Rizwan and Saud stitched a good stand, was important not to let the game drift. Not to forget how Shami, Hardik, Harshit bowled as well.”
He added: “It was a good performance from the entire unit. Boys understand what kind of job is required out of them. It’s tricky at times because not all will get a bowl. I try to figure out who’s creating the most problems to the batters and make decisions.”
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