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Team India’s star batter Virat Kohli smashed a record-equalling 49th ODI century on Sunday, taking him level to India great Sachin Tendulkar for most tons in the format. Kohli, on his 35th birthday, got to the landmark in 119 balls, including 10 fours, at Kolkata’s iconic Eden Gardens. Incidentally, Kohli had also smashed his maiden ODI century at the same venue in 2009 during a match against Sri Lanka. It had taken him 277 innings to score 49 hundreds in the format, compared to the 438 required by Tendulkar.
Following Kohli’s colossal feat on Sunday, India’s former head coach Ravi Shastri was all praise for the batter, and drew parallels with Sachin Tendulkar when the ‘master blaster’ was chasing Sunil Gavaskar’s century record in Tests. The India legend had held the record for most tons (34) in the longest format, and Tendulkar equalled Gavaskar in 2004.
“It’s amazing. We are a country obsessed with records. We are obsessed with hundreds. And Sunny was the trendsetter. I remember when Sachin Tendulkar was chasing his 34th, it wasn’t easy. He had many sleepless nights, he would get out in the 70s and 80s. And it took a while, just like it has taken Virat Kohli,” Shastri said during the mid-innings show on Star Sports following Kohli’s record-equalling century.
“Today, it was a very calculated innings. He started off quick, when the ball was coming onto the bat. And when the ball started dripping, it wasn’t easy to pick the bowlers. So, he soaked the pressure, bid his time, and upped the ante,” Shastri further said.
Kohli has had a stellar World Cup so far; this was his second century in the ongoing edition, with this first coming against Bangladesh last month (103*). He also has five half-centuries in the 2023 tournament; Kohli came close to equalling Tendulkar’s record on two occasions, during the games against New Zealand and Sri Lanka. However, he was dismissed merely five runs short of his century against the Kiwis, and scored a strong 88 against the islanders in Mumbai.
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