Once, he was a young and beginner in cricket and today, as he looks back over a period north of 13 years - fighting for India on the 22 yards (both as a former captain and purely, as a batter), he stands
as an icon. Today, Virat Kohli may only be playing one format in international cricket and that is the one day format. Thus far, across the annals of his illustrious career, that began from the onset of the 2012 cricketing season, Kohli has stunned opponents, crushed record breaking feats, established a new wave of world records, risen like a batting demigod and made lightwork of the most onerous or challenging of India's opponents.
Most importantly, however, he has done all of the above in a scintillating and tireless fashion bringing to the fore a brand of cricket that has been aggressive and purely passionate. As an athlete, he epitomses prime fitness and as an achiever, he stays perennially hungry. He has constantly pushed the canvas of batting greatness, one of the reasons why he is such a high level achiever.
Here are five ODI records held by Virat Kohli that might never be broken:
1. Most ODI centuries in a winning cause for India
43 out of his 51 one-day international centuries have been struck in Team India's winning cause. If that is not prolific and iconic, then what is. He's been a standout performer in that sense for India especially given the fact that he never usually succumbs to pressure even during difficult run chases for his country.
2. Most ODI centuries in the format
This is an imposing mention on the grand list of ODI records of Virat Kohli that may never be broken. Why so? Well, for starters, just look at the number and comprehend its size on the whole - 51 ODI tons!
That is correct; thus far, 'King Kohli' - as he is fondly called, has struck 51 one-day centuries. That is the most by any batter ever in any age or era when it comes to playing one-day international cricket. And make no mistake, there've been tremendous batters right from the time of Sir Viv Richards and Kapil Dev to the era of Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Jacques Kallis and Kumar Sangakkara and only one name, over and above all, have been able to hit 51 centuries.
This is such an enormous feat of its own for his Team India that the entire nation lauds it and rightly so.
No one may be able to outsmart this incredible ODI century count. It's just that difficult. And make no mistake - Kohli achieved this kingly number whilst facing some really challenging bowlers such as Starc and Johnson, Malinga and Hazlewood, Roach and Alzzari, Mohd Amir and Shaheen Afridi and the likes of Adil Rashid and company.
3. Most runs in a single edition of a World Cup
This one happened the last time around that a Men's ODI World Cup was held. Virat Kohli fired 765 runs, and that's not all. He would fire 3 centuries, which was besides 6 half centuries and the likes of Bangladesh, South Africa and New Zealand had to bear the brunt of Virat's unsparing blade as the iconic batter amassed one century against each of these challenging opponents.
He would also hit his runs at an average of 95. This was a genius feat with the bat, wasn't it?
It was a matter of great heartbreak that despite Indian batters such as Kohli, Rohit himself, Iyer and Rahul being in form, they couldn't clear the final hurdle in the form of Australia.
4. Fastest to 14,000 one-day runs
One among the big ODI records of Virat Kohli that may never be broken is the very fact that he has been the fastest to reach 14,000 ODI runs. That means, he took the least amount of ODI innings to reach 14,000 one-day international runs.
He took just 287 innings in this format to amass 14,000 one-day international runs.
It will be a really hard record to break for any modern-day batter even as the current generation sees several remarkably talented batters in the form of a Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shai Hope, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Duckett and the likes.
5. Most number of ODI centuries in a run chase
There are batters who tend to struggle when it comes to chasing down run totals, forget doing that successfully. And then, there are batters who thrive in these difficult conditions. One of the ODI records of Virat Kohli that may never be broken is the very fact that he has struck 28, yes that is the number, 28 of his 51 ODI centuries have come in a run chase. If that is not an incredible feat, then what is?
There are several remarkable batters who have been able to hit 28 ODI centuries, on the whole, if you think about Chris Gayle, Brian Lara, Kane Williamson, Steve and Mark Waugh and then there is Virat Kohli who has hit 28 in run chases. Wow!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):
How many ODI runs has Virat Kohli scored so far?
He currently stands next to 14,181 runs in one-day cricket.
How many ODI centuries has Virat Kohli scored?
The great batter has struck 51 ODI centuries so far. The most ever in the format!
