Virat Kohli is having a time of his life. He is playing some greats knocks and is looking the best batsman on display not only from India but throughout the world. His stupendous form off late has catapulted him to the top spot in ICC Players Rankings for ODI batsmen.
Kohli had scores of 61 (in Pune), 100 not out (in Jaipur), 68 (in Mohali), 115 not out (in Nagpur) and 0 (in Bengaluru) against Australia, with the two matches in Ranchi and Cuttack abandoned due to rain. This gave the 24-year-old a series aggregate of 344 runs at an average of 114.66, and a reward of 38 ratings points to put him into the number-one spot for the first time in his career, just a few days before his 25th birthday.
Kohli has now become the third India batsman to hold the number-one batting rank in ODI cricket, after Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni.
There have been a lot of batsmen in the past who been compared with the likes of Master Blaster, but this young lad has achieved feats which put him in comparison with the all-time greats. Kohli till now has played 119 ODIs and is sitting pretty with 17 hundreds, inclduing the fastest century by an India to his name. He is also the fastest Indian to score 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 runs.
Virat Kohli is the only batsman in the history of ODIs to score 3,000 runs apart from averaging 60-plus in chases -- his aggregate being 3076 (ave. 62.77) in 63 innings, including 10 hundreds and 17 fifties.
Kohli's average of 82.70 in successful chases is the second highest in ODIs (minimum 2,000 runs) -- his tally being 2481 in 43 innings (13 times not out), including 10 hundreds and 12 fifties. Only Mahendra Singh Dhoni has a better average (100.09) in successful chases -- 2102 runs in 54 innings (33 times not out), including two hundreds and 14 fifties.
There are a lot of qualities which Kohli possesses that can make him a great player. Let’s discuss some of those.
Tremendous hand-eye coordination: Like his Delhi partner Virendra Sehwag, Kohli also possess the lethal hand-eye coordination. The way he whips the ball through mid-wicket area is a treat to watch. His back-foot cover drives give the glimpse of legendary Brian Lara.
His flamboyance: If Sachin, Lara, Ponting and Viv Richards have something in common (apart from their great records) it’s the flamboyance with the way they batted. There were times when these batsmen virtually toyed with the opponent bowlers. Kohli in his recent innings has showed the same qualities. Kohli plays with a natural flair and looks to dominate the bowlers from the word go. If he is on the crease, than one thing is for sure that he will be the man who will be dominating the game.
His approach towards the game: Virat Kohli knows only one thing -- if he is going out to bat, he is going there to win the match for his country. The way he celebrates his success might not be right, but it shows how much it means to him. Kohli gives his 100 percent all the time and it looks like he takes win or loss personally and it shows in his performance.
If the new Indian vice-captain continues to play the way he has been playing than the time is not far when these comparisons will change from an illusion to a reality.
By Indian Sports News
