Indian captain Virat Kohli has made it a habit of breaking records and the latest one is special. Kohli has received the highest batting ratings for ODIs in the latest rankings revealed by the ICC and he is sitting at the numero uno position with 909 points — the highest for any batsman in the last 27 years. He’s just the second player after AB de Villiers to have over 900 points in Tests and ODIs at the same time.
Interestingly, Kohli is the only batsman to find a place in the Top 3 slots in all the formats of cricket at the same time. While he sits in the no.1 position in ODIs, he is second in the Test batsmen rankings behind Australia’s Steve Smith (947) with 912 points. In T20Is, Virat only behind Babar Azam (786) and Aaron Finch (784) with 776 points.
Also read: Varun Aaron praises Kohli for supporting the Indian pacersKohli’s rating as per the latest rankings is the highest of any player since Australia’s Dean Jones in 1991. Vivian Richards (935 in 1985), Zaheer Abbas (931 in 1983), Greg Chappell (921 in 1981), David Gower (919 in 1983) and Javed Miandad (910 in 1987) have received a higher rating than the Indian skipper. He is the first Indian batsman to go into the 900 points mark.
Among the bowlers, India’s wrist-spin dup of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav have been rewarded for a great series. Leg-spinner Chahal has moved up eight positions to the 21st position with 16 scalps in South Africa series while chinaman Kuldeep’s 17 wickets have helped him move up 15 positions to 47th position. Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah’s eight wickets have lifted him two places to the numero uno position in ICC ODI rankings.
Virat Kohli’s another record
Indian skipper Virat Kohli has continued his purple patch in the Rainbow Nation as well. He has now scored 4 centuries and 2 fifties to his name after 10 games (3 Tests, 6 ODIs, and 1 T20I). But more interestingly, he is just 130 runs away from amassing 1000 runs on a single tour. Kohli has scored as many as 870 runs from 13 innings at an average of 87.00 and a strike rate of 82.38 on the South African tour so far with the help of 7 sixes and 91 boundaries.
West Indian legend Vivian Richards is the only batsman in the history of Cricket to score 1000 runs on an overseas tour. Richards achieved the feat in 1976 when he amassed 1045 runs in England. While Richards had scored 216 runs in ODIs, he smashed 829 in four Test matches.
Also read: David Warner Follows The Footsteps Of Virat Kohli
In comparison to the same, Kohli scored 286 runs in the three-match Test series with a century and a fifty, 558 runs in the 6 ODI innings with 3 centuries and fifty and 26 runs in the first T20I at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday. Considering his form, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to go past another milestone for the India skipper.
The second T20I is scheduled to be played at the SuperSport Park in Centurion on Wednesday.
