In the India vs South Africa match, the 35-year-old cricketer has surpassed the 2000-run mark in a calendar year for the seventh occasion in his career.
Despite facing thunderbolts from the South African bowlers on a green pitch, Virat Kohli showcased a brilliant counter-attacking innings, scoring 76 on Thursday. Despite the team’s significant loss, Kohli added another record to his illustrious career. The 35-year-old has now surpassed 2000 runs in a calendar year for the seventh time in his cricketing journey, a feat unmatched by any other batter in the 146 years of recorded cricket history.
Kohli previously achieved this milestone in 2012 (2186 runs), 2014 (2286 runs), 2016 (2595 runs), 2017 (2818 runs), 2018 (2735 runs), and 2019 (2455 runs). This year, the Indian talisman accumulated 2048 runs, trailing behind his teammate Shubman Gill, who topped the charts with 2154 runs in the calendar year 2023.
In the second innings of the initial Test, Kohli shouldered the responsibility alone as he received no backing from fellow batters. Unfortunately, the Indian team suffered a significant defeat, losing the game by an innings and 32 runs.
Following a two-year period of a downturn in form, the star batter has made a remarkable comeback to his dazzling peak this year. Despite India not securing victory in the World Cup, Kohli was honored with the Man of the Tournament award, having emerged as the top run-scorer with an impressive tally of 765 runs.
In the ODI World Cup semifinal between India and New Zealand, Kohli achieved a historic milestone by becoming the first player to register 50 centuries in One Day Internationals (ODIs). This accomplishment saw him surpassing Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar’s record for the most centuries in the format. Tendulkar, who retired a decade ago, had scored 49 centuries in ODIs and an additional 51 in Test matches.
In contrast, Kohli has accumulated 29 centuries in ODIs, along with one more in T20 Internationals, bringing his overall international century count to an impressive 80. On the same day, Kohli also surpassed Tendulkar’s record of 673 runs, establishing a new mark for the most runs in a single ODI World Cup.