Incredible stats that define the all-format stardom of Virat Kohli
Indian batter Virat Kohli recorded his career-best score against Australia in the 4th Test of the Border-Gavaskar series in Ahmedabad. The 34-year-old was adjudged the Player of the Match after scoring a defiant 186(241). Kohli ended his run-drought in the format, having registered his first 50+ score in 15 Test innings. He regained his mojo in Tests, having done so in white-ball cricket.
Why does this story matter?
Kohli was in a downward spiral since November 2019, when he scored a brilliant 136 against Bangladesh in the 2nd Test in Kolkata. Centuries evaded him until the 2022 Asia Cup where he smashed his maiden T20I ton in a match against Afghanistan. Kohli has scored three ODI centuries and a Test hundred ever since. Yet again, he has proved his mettle across formats.
Most international runs among active cricketers
During the Delhi Test against Australia, Kohli became the fastest batter to complete 25,000 international runs. Kohli attained the feat in his 549th inning, beating Sachin Tendulkar (577), Ricky Ponting (588), Jacques Kallis (594), and Kumar Sangakkara (608) in this regard. Kohli is miles ahead of active cricketers in terms of international runs (25,233). England's Joe Root is his closest rival with 18,048 runs.
Kohli averages 65.66 in winning cause
Kohli is one of three batters with over 15,000 international runs in winning cause. Kohli, with 16,416 runs at 65.66, is only behind Ponting (20,140) and Tendulkar (17,113) on this list. Notably, Kohli (52), Tendulkar (53), and Ponting (55) are the only three players with over 50 tons in this regard. Among active cricketers, Rohit Sharma follows Kohli, with 12,410 runs and 35 tons.
Over 10,000 international runs away from home
Kohli is among five cricketers with over 10,000 international runs away from home. Kohli, who occupies the fourth spot, has 10,753 runs at 48.00 in this regard. Tendulkar (13,780), Dravid (11,765), and Kumar Sangakkara (10,780) are above him.
Centuries in each of the three formats
In September 2022, Kohli became just the fourth Indian batter to have scored a century in each of the three international formats. He broke the deadlock by smacking a 61-ball 122* against Afghanistan, his maiden century in T20I cricket. It was also his first century across formats since November 2019. Later that year, Kohli became the first batter to complete 4,000 T20I runs.
Test double-centuries against six of seven oppositions
Kohli has double-centuries against six of the seven oppositions (he has faced) in Tests. In Ahmedabad, he fell 14 runs (186) short to script a world record. Kohli could have become the first batter to score Test double-tons against seven different oppositions. His best scores - Vs Australia: 186, Bangladesh: 204, England: 235, NZ: 211, SA: 254*, SL: 243, and WI: 200.
Kohli's middle-over exploits in ODI cricket
Kohli has the second-most ODI centuries (46). His success in the format can be attributed to his middle-over exploits. As per ESPNcricinfo, Kohli is the only Indian batter with over 9,500 ODI runs in middle overs (11-40). The right-handed batter has racked up 9,522 ODI runs at a phenomenal average of 71.05 in this phase (SR: 94.12). Overall, he is only behind Sangakkara (9,944).
Why Kohli is a jack of all trades
Kohli is well-versed in all gears of batting! From scoring a 289-ball Test century against England in 2012 to powering India's famous victory against Pakistan in the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup (53-ball 82*), Kohli has seen it all. Notably, he scored his second-slowest Test ton in the recently-concluded Ahmedabad Test. Kohli also owns the fastest ODI ton by an Indian (52 balls).
10+ PoM awards in every international format
As stated, Kohli was adjudged the Player of the Match in Ahmedabad. According to ESPNcricinfo, he has become the only player to have won 10+ PoM awards in each of the three formats. Kohli has received the award 10 times in Tests, 15 times in T20Is, and a staggering 38 times in the 50-over format. He is truly a legend!
