2017 was a record-breaking year for India skipper Virat Kohli and he started the new year, much in the same fashion with his individual brilliance in the tour of South Africa.
The batting maestro became the fastest-ever to 8,000 and then 9,000 ODI runs in the past calendar year while also breaking the record for the most centuries by a skipper in the same period.
Off the back of three double tons in the Test format over the past 12 months, the 29-year-old also overtook Brian Lara’s record of five double centuries as captain of his side.
With his undeniable genius showing no signs of stopping and appetite for runs only increasing, we take a look at the more records Kohli could break in the near future.
FASTEST TO 10,000 ODI RUNS
Having already been the fastest to the 8,000 and 9,000 run mark, Kohli will most definitely be the quickest to the next milestone. Having already scored a staggering 9,588 runs in just 200 innings at an average of 58.1, there is no doubt that the superstar cricketer will get to the 10,000-run mark in 2018.
He will become only the 13th man in the history of ODI cricket to do so if MS Dhoni clears the same hurdle as expected in the near future. The fastest currently to the 10,000 mark is Sachin Tendulkar, who took 259 innings to do so. Kohli should break this one fairly easily, given he has played 200 to date.
Fastest to reach 10000 ODI runs. (inns)
1. Sachin – 259
2. Ganguly – 263
3. Ponting – 266
Dhoni – 9737 runs (260 inns)#INDvAUS— RaNa 😎 (@BeingRk45) September 18, 2017
FIRST INDIAN TO 2000 T20I RUNS
With 1,983 runs in his kitty so far in the T20I format, Kohli is all set to become only the third batsman in history to breach the 2,000-run mark. Only New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill have achieved just that so far.
Having played only 53 innings so far in the format, Kohli should be the quickest to 2,000 too by a comfortable distance with the current record being held by McCullum who required 67 innings to get there.
McCullum was the first to breach the 2,000-run mark.
MOST TEST WINS AS INDIA CAPTAIN
Dhoni currently holds the record for the most wins as India’s Test captain, with 27 wins from his 60-match tenure. Kohli already has 21 wins in just 34 Tests as India skipper and needs seven more to break the record.
With India slated to play 12 more Tests this calendar year against the likes of England, West Indies and Australia, it is quite possible he could go past the benchmark.
Kohli should beat Dhoni’s record comfortably judging by his win-rate.
MOST ODI TONS AS SKIPPER
The Delhi-man joined South Africa’s AB de Villiers with 13 ODI centuries as a skipper after the recently-concluded series between the two sides. That puts the pair just behind only Australian great Ricky Ponting in the all-time list.
With the astonishing rate he churns up one century after another, it is not hard to think that Ponting will be overhauled pretty soon too.
5 records @imVkohli broke in this ODI series:
1. First batsman to score 500+ runs in bilateral ODI series
2. Fastest to score 17000 Int runs
3. First Indian to score 3 tons in bilateral ODI series
4. Most ODI 100s by an Indian captain
5. Highest individual score against SA in SA pic.twitter.com/IP98KaK8s0— Virat Crew (@ViratCrew) February 20, 2018
HIGHEST ODI RATING POINTS
The India skipper’s brilliant ODI series against the Proteas helped him achieve his highest-ever ICC rating points (909). He is the first Indian to breach to the 900-mark with Tendulkar the second best at 887 points. Only six other players in history have achieved a rating higher than Kohli’s.
Of them, West Indies legend Sir Viv Richards currently holds the record for attaining 935 points during 1985. At the rate Kohli is going, this is one record that he would dearly like to achieve if he wants to cement his place as the format’s all-time greatest.
Highest ICC rating points as batsman in ODIs (900+):
935 Viv Richards
931 Zaheer Abbas
921 Greg Chappell
919 David Gower
918 Dean Jones
910 Javed Miandad
909 VIRAT KOHLI
908 Brian Lara
902 AB de Villiers
901 Hashim Amla
900 Desmond Haynes
900 Gary Kirsten— Bharath Seervi (@SeerviBharath) February 20, 2018
