Ranchi carried a hint of winter in the air when Virat Kohli walked off with a century cradled almost casually in his hands. Raipur, warmer and buzzing with festive energy, watched him raise his bat again barely three days later. Two venues, two contrasting moods, but the message was unmistakable: back-to-back ODI hundreds, his 83rd and 84th in international cricket, signalled not just a return to form but a revival of the classical Kohli rhythm.
The precise footwork, the still head, the commanding presence at the crease—everything felt like a familiar melody he had flawlessly rediscovered. For two years, the idea of Virat Kohli reaching 100 international centuries had drifted into the realm of nostalgia—something fans smiled at but no longer debated seriously. Ranchi and Raipur changed that. Suddenly, the once far-fetched dream seems distant but attainable, improbable but not impossible.
Kohli now lives within a narrower cricketing world. Test cricket, his most cherished format, is no longer part of his journey. T20Is are gone too. His universe revolves around ODIs—a format frequently questioned for its relevance, squeezed between franchise leagues and international commitments.
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Yet, in this shrinking landscape, ODIs might be the only format that gives him the space and time to construct something monumental. With no Test or T20 workload, every ODI innings becomes an opportunity to build deep, to shape big scores, to chase milestones. But fewer formats also mean fewer innings. A narrower road with limited chances. As per India’s current Future Tours Programme (FTP) until 2027, Virat Kohli is guaranteed 29 ODIs—series against New Zealand, Afghanistan, West Indies, Sri Lanka, and England.
Add to that the 2027 ODI World Cup, which returns to a 14-team, multi-stage structure. If India makes it to the final, they will play at least 11 matches. And we still haven’t accounted for potential ODI Asia Cups or preparatory series before the World Cup. Realistically, by the time India steps into the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, Virat Kohli could have roughly 35 ODIs left.
Virat Kohli can complete Hundred Centuries before 2027 ODI world cup! 🙌🏻
He has currently 84 International Centuries for Team India in all format!
If he Continue his form till 2027 ODI World CUP, Mission 100 will be achieved in no time! 🕰️THE KING IS CLOSER TO MASTER BLASTER… pic.twitter.com/TonOms2269
— Possible11 (@Possible11team) December 5, 2025
Thirty-five matches. Sixteen hundred needed. That’s the equation. On paper, it appears absurd. Sixteen hundreds in roughly 35 innings requires a rate even Kohli’s golden years barely touched. Between 2017 and 2019, when he set the ODI world ablaze, he hammered 17 centuries in 65 innings—one every 3.8 innings. Incredibly, in his last 19 ODI innings—including his twin hundreds in Ranchi and Raipur—he has five centuries. That’s also one every 3.8 innings. It feels like he’s circling back to his peak.
But to get to 100 hundreds, he must surpass even that peak. He would need a century roughly every 2.1 innings. It sounds unreasonable. Yet, Kohli’s career is built on making the unreasonable seem routine. Throughout his career, he has stitched together 11 spree phases—clusters of consecutive centuries in which form, hunger, and mental clarity aligned perfectly.
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These streaks are unpredictable. They don’t follow schedules or venue logic. They arrive like summer storms, sudden and destructive, leaving bowlers scrambling. Ranchi and Raipur resemble the opening notes of another surge. The angles are sharp again, the front-foot press is early, the hands are soft, the tempo immaculate. The Virat Kohli of streaks is stirring.
If that streak lands at the right time—say during India’s home season in 2026 or in the 2027 World Cup—six or seven hundreds could come in a burst. Suddenly, 100 wouldn’t feel mythical; it would feel within touching distance. But reality has a way of clearing its throat.
Virat Kohli will be 38 during the 2027 World Cup. His hunger remains fierce, but the body voices its limits. Workload management will be crucial. Team balance will matter; younger batters will need exposure. And not every ODI will offer the platform for a century chase. The climb from 84 to 100 steepens sharply with every passing month.
Yet, with Kohli, certainty has never existed—except the certainty of defying logic. From Hobart in 2012 to Melbourne in 2022, his greatest triumphs have come when the script said no. He has built a career on rewriting probabilities. So yes, 100 centuries may remain a towering, unreachable summit. But after Ranchi and Raipur, the path toward it glows faintly again.
Sixteen hundreds. Approximately thirty-five chances. One man who has always specialised in the impossible. We don’t know if he’ll get there. But with Virat Kohli, belief is often the first sign that magic is about to unfold. And right now, belief is back.
