Virat Kohli hits much-awaited 49th ODI Century on 35th Birthday to equal Sachin Tendulkar’s Record
Indian cricketer Virat Kohli achieved a significant milestone by equalling the record for the most number of One Day International (ODI) centuries. Kohli reached his 49th ODI century during the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 match against South Africa, which took place at Kolkata’s iconic Eden Gardens on his 35th birthday.
In this remarkable feat, Kohli matched the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, who had also scored 49 ODI centuries in his illustrious career spanning 463 matches. Notably, Kohli reached this milestone in his 289th ODI appearance. It’s worth mentioning that he came close to achieving this record on two prior occasions during the same tournament, falling just short with scores of 97 against New Zealand and 88 against Sri Lanka.
Interestingly, Kohli’s journey to his first ODI century began at the same venue, Eden Gardens, against Sri Lanka in 2009. Furthermore, he also achieved his 50th international century in a Test match at Eden Gardens against Sri Lanka in 2017.
With 79 centuries across all three formats of the game, Kohli is now second only to Sachin Tendulkar, who boasts an incredible 100 international centuries. Kohli’s remarkable achievements place him among the all-time greats in international cricket.
Kohli, Iyer’s crucial partnership help India post 326 on board
After losing both openers, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, Indian batters Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer displayed determination and formed a crucial century partnership, each reaching their respective half-centuries. Their partnership, which stood at 134 runs off 158 balls, was eventually broken when Iyer was dismissed by Lungi Ngidi after scoring 77 runs from 87 deliveries. Shortly after, KL Rahul also fell, leaving Suryakumar Yadav to accompany Kohli as the latter approached the 90s.
The match at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata began with India winning the toss and choosing to bat. They got off to a flying start, reaching fifty runs within five overs. Rohit and Gill unleashed a flurry of boundaries, showing no mercy to the South African bowlers, including Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi. However, Kagiso Rabada, who came in as the first change, managed to halt the onslaught by dismissing India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, after a brisk 40 runs from 24 balls. Gill’s promising innings was curtailed by Keshav Maharaj.
Notably, India retained the same playing XI, while South Africa made one change by bringing in Tabraiz Shamsi for Gerald Coetzee, fielding two spinners in the match.
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