Virat Kohli's 18 Years in International Cricket: 18 Lesser-Known Records

Virat Kohli's 18 years in international cricket: 18 lesser-known records held by batting icon

New Delhi, August 18

A boy from West Delhi, who grind it out in domestic cricket and brought the U19 World Cup glory home in 2008, made his India debut against Sri Lanka, scoring 12 on debut. But what seemed to be a forgettable debut turned out to be one of sport's greatest stories of transformation, hunger, passion and resilience.

Since his debut, Virat has scored over 28,000 international runs, scored 85 centuries and has the entire world counting down each hundred that will make him the second batter to reach the mark of 100 international tons after Sachin Tendulkar. With every trophy from the U19 World Cup to the IPL to his name, Virat is the only player to have won every major white-ball title in sport's history.

Here are some lesser-known records and accomplishments that Virat holds across all forms of cricket:

-Most 150-plus scores by a non-opener in ODIs: ODI cricket's leading centurion loves to go big whenever he gets a chance to do so. The sight of Virat with a slightly charged-up demeanour and changed stance during slog overs is a death knell for bowlers.

Virat has the most 150-plus scores in ODI cricket by a non-opener, with a total of five such instances, with West Indies icon Viv Richards (three such scores) and South African titan AB de Villiers (two such scores) behind him. On five such occasions, Virat has scored 820 runs at a mind-boggling average of 820, with a best score of 183 against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2012.

-Only player with 20,000 international runs in a decade: Sachin stands tall in the international arena with a total of 34,357 and 100 centuries, but not even the 'God of Cricket' has reached to a decade-long high that Virat enjoyed from 2010-2019. Virat is the only cricketer to have ever scored 20,000 international runs in a single decade, with 20,960 runs in 386 international matches and 431 innings at an average of 57.58, with 69 centuries and 98 fifties and a best score of 254*.

This extraordinary run includes 'Player of the Tournament' winning performances in the ICC T20 World Cup 2014, 2016 and notable performances in India's ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and ICC Champions Trophy 2013 wins, among other ICC events. In terms of volume of runs for a decade, Virat has outdone Australian Ricky Ponting (18,962 in 363 matches with 55 centuries in the 2000s) and Tendulkar (14,197 runs in 297 matches with 46 tons in the 1990s).

-ICC Awards sweeping juggernaut: Virat holds the distinction of clean-sweeping all ICC Awards, the 'Cricketer of the Year' trophy, the 'Test Player of the Year' and 'ODI Player of the Year' honours all at once in the 2018 edition, making him the only player to have done so.

The year 2018 was an exceptional one for Virat, scoring a sensational 2,735 runs in 37 matches and 47 innings at an average of 68.37, with 11 centuries and nine fifties and a best score of 160*. This included a record-breaking 558-run ODI series outing in South Africa and Test centuries in India, Australia, England and South Africa. Records would take flights across continents along with Virat and his kit bag, making it one of the finest years for a batter.

He also holds the distinction of having won the most ICC Awards with a total of 10.

-Most runs across 10 successive ODI innings: Virat's record-breaking run in South Africa made him the batter with most runs in 10 successive ODI innings, with 995 runs in 10 innings at an average of 142.14, including five centuries and three fifties. This run also helped him become the fastest to 10,000 ODI runs, in just 205 innings.

-Only Indian with centuries on Independence Day and Republic Day: Virat is also the only Indian to have scored an international ton each on two of the nation's most special occasions, Independence Day on August 15 (114* in 99 balls against West Indies in 2019, with the rain-curtailed match running into August 15) and on Republic Day, 116 against Australia at Adelaide 2012, his first-ever Test century.

-Part of an elite SENA century company: Virat Kohli is only the fourth Indian after Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Mohammed Azharuddin with Test centuries in all SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) nations.

-Most international centuries in winning cause: With a total of 59 centuries, Virat stands tall with most tons coming in winning cause. His record in ODIs is the most staggering of them all, with 44 of his 54 tons contributing to victory.

-Faster than Bradman in double tons: Virat Kohli has seven Test double centuries, the most by a Test captain. He is also the fastest to score these seven double tons, faster than late Aussie legend Don Bradman, who first reached this mark.

All these double centuries came in 1,176 days, making him the fastest to do so, outpacing Bradman, who achieved his first seven double tons in 1,484 days.

-In run-chases, its Virat and then daylight: Virat has an exceptional record in chases of 350-plus runs in the 50-over format. India has aced three 350-plus run chases out of four, and in each of these, the man in the number 18 shirt has a century. Notably, he has scored a fifty-plus scores in all these run chases, with a total of 411 runs in four innings at an average of 205.50, with three centuries and a fifty.

-Most IPL seasons with 500-plus runs: Virat Kohli has a total of nine IPL seasons with 500 runs or more, including four successive seasons of 600-plus runs or more from 2023-26, speaking volumes of his evolution as a T20 cricketer. Two of these seasons, 2025 and 2026, have led to trophy wins.

-Outstanding unbeaten record in the T20 World Cup: Virat Kohli is the leading run-getter in T20 WC history, with 1,292 runs in 35 matches, including 15 fifties. However, even more stunning is his record being unbeaten in the tournament. Whenever Virat stays unbeaten, India has won the match. Virat has finished unbeaten eight times, scoring 464 runs with six fifties to his name.

-Test double tons against six different opponents: Virat has scored Test double tons against West Indies, England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and is in the elite company of Pakistan legend Younis Khan and Sri Lanka Kumar Sangakkara for double tons against most opponents.

-Most centuries back-to-back in ODIs: Virat has scored back-to-back ODI tons 12 times, a record. South Africa's AB de Villiers is at second spot with seven back-to-back ODI tons.

-900 rating points across all formats: A former world number one across all formats, Virat is also the only player to have made it 900-plus points in Test, ODIs and T20Is.

-A special fifty: Among the top 20 run-getters in international cricket history, Virat Kohli is currently the only one with an all-format fifty-plus batting average, with an average of 52.71.

-Most 'Player of the Series' awards: Virat holds the most number of 'Player of the Series' awards in international cricket, with a total of 22, next to Sachin's 20 awards.

-Most runs in ICC white-ball events: Virat has the most runs across all ICC limited-overs tournaments, combining the 50-over and 20-over World Cups and ICC Champions Trophy, with 3,834 runs in 90 matches and 87 innings at an average of 61.83, with six centuries and 33 fifties, showcasing his ability to bring his best during the most crunch situations.

-Most 'Player of the Match' in ICC limited-over events: With a total of 15 'Player of the Match' awards in ICC limited-over tournaments, Virat is at the top of the list.

— ANI