Not long ago, Virat Kohli was struggling for runs across all formats of the game. The star Indian batter endured an extended lean patch as he failed to score an international century for almost three years.
Amid the lean patch, Kohli decided to take a break from the game after the England tour last year. On his comeback in the Asia Cup 2022, the right-hander instantly made an impact as he finished as the second highest run-scorer. Since then, he hasn’t looked back.
Virat was the top run-getter in the 2022 edition of T20 World Cup in Australia, scoring 296 runs from six innings, including a match-winning knock of 82 not out in 53 balls against arch-rivals Pakistan at MCG.
After regaining his old mojo, Kohli is now hitting centuries for fun in international cricket. He has slammed five international hundreds (two in Tests and three in ODIs) this year so far, with the most recent one coming against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2023 last month.
It was Kohli’s 47th ODI ton he is now only three hundreds away from surpassing the legendary Sachin Tendulkar’s tally of 49 centuries in the 50-over format.
On Tuesday (October), Virat looked set to move within one century of Tendulkar’s record during India’s World Cup 2023 opener against Australia until being dismissed for 85.
However, Australian batting great Ricky Ponting feels Kohli can surpass his compatriot’s tally during the showpiece tournament on home soil.
“I think he will. I think he'll definitely get two hundreds, whether he gets the three is another thing,” Ponting said on the latest episode of The ICC Review podcast.
“But the venues, the wickets and the grounds in India are just so conducive to scoring, making big runs. Who knows with him, it's probably his last World Cup as well.
“If he gets that mindset, and we saw that he's in pretty good touch, and we know with him he's always hungry. He's a winner, he wants success for himself and for his team.
“There is every chance at the end of this World Cup he could be equal with, if not breaking Sachin’s record, which is remarkable within itself,” he added.
Ponting also showered rich praise on Kohli for his work ethic and his supreme fitness standards.
“Forty-nine one-day international hundreds is amazing. But he deserves that, he works hard,” he said.
“You watch him even in the field, game one, he just looks ultra fit, is up for the contest every ball whether it's in the field or with these batting hands. So I'd never write him off.”
26 out of Kohli’s 47 ODI tons have come while chasing down targets. No wonder, Ponting named the Indian batter as his first choice for batting in the second innings of an ODI.
“His record speaks for itself, when you get hundreds chasing, most of those in winning causes. He'd be my first pick by the length of the straight.”
