NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli, at 35 years outdated, is compellingly positioning himself because the potential biggest 50-over participant of all time after a formidable World Cup marketing campaign on house soil.
Sachin Tendulkar, the sport’s premier batsman till his retirement in 2013, handed on the mantle to Kohli, who has dominated the cricketing scene for prolonged durations over the previous decade.Initially a part of batting’s “Fab 4” alongside Joe Root of England, Steve Smith of Australia, and Kane Williamson of New Zealand, Kohli has not solely sustained his brilliance however has surged forward of his contemporaries.
Between 2011 and 2019, Kohli amassed over 1,000 ODI runs in a yr on seven events, showcasing his exceptional consistency. Nevertheless, he confronted a dry spell with out a world century for almost three years after that prolific interval.
The elegant right-hander ended that drought in September final yr and has been at his prolific finest on the present World Cup, the place he’s the runaway top-scorer with 711 runs from 10 matches together with three centuries.

He overtook Tendulkar’s report of 49 ODI a whole bunch in Mumbai on Wednesday and it was solely becoming that his idol was current on the Wankhede Stadium to see it.
“I could not be happier that an Indian broke my report,” Tendulkar wrote on X, previously often known as Twitter, to congratulate his protege.

“And to do it on the most important stage – within the World Cup Semi-final – and at my house floor is the icing on the cake.”
The tempo at which Kohli broke Tendulkar’s report additionally stands out, reaching his fiftieth ODI ton in 279 innings to his predecessor’s 49 in 452 innings.
Kohli appears resistant to the stress that different batters really feel whereas chasing, and 27 of his 50 a whole bunch have come batting second.
RICHARDS COMPARISONS
His dominance has invariably drawn comparisons with West Indies nice Viv Richards, who himself is an admirer of Kohli’s batting.
“I’m an enormous fan of Virat … and he continues to point out why he has to go down as one of many all-time greats, proper up there with the likes of the nice Sachin,” Richards wrote in his column for the Worldwide Cricket Council.

“Many individuals have made comparisons between the 2 of us through the years, partly due to our shared depth on the sphere.
“I really like Virat’s enthusiasm… He’s at all times within the recreation and I like people like that.”
Age and fatherhood might have mellowed him, however Kohli can nonetheless placed on an arresting show when he steps onto the sphere.
As soon as out within the center, Kohli doesn’t shun the highlight, he hogs it – even when celebrating a rival’s dismissal through which he has performed no function.
Followers love him. And plenty of obey him as properly – with a gesture or a stare he can whip up frenzied assist from the stands when the crew want further motivation, or cease the group from booing a rival, comparable to Steve Smith, or taunting a fellow India participant.
However it’s with the bat that he’s at his finest, and there’s hardly a extra spectacular sight in up to date cricket than his checked cowl drive.
Pakistan bowling nice Wasim Akram’s put up on X this week finest summed up Kohli’s impression on batting.
“We dwell in @imVkohli period. Congratulations emperor,” the bowling nice wrote after Kohli’s Mumbai masterclass.
(With Reuters Inputs)