Virat Kohli put on a show with the bat in India’s thumping 317-run victory over Sri Lanka in the third and final ODI at Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday (January 15).
Batting at No. 3, Kohli slammed 166 not out off 110 balls, propelling the Men in Blue to a gigantic 390/5 in 50 overs. His knock was studded with 13 fours and 8 sixes.
It was Virat’s second century in this series and his 46th ton in the 50-over format. With this knock, he also took his international hundred tally to 74.
Meanwhile, batting legend Sunil Gavaskar is confident that Virat Kohli will be able to achieve the elusive milestone of 100 international tons, provided that the 34-year-old continues to play for the next 5-6 years.
Kohli needs 26 more centuries to equal the legendary Sachin Tendulkar's world record of 100 international hundreds. While Tendulkar had smashed 51 Test hundreds and 49 ODIs hundreds in his illustrious career, Kohli has hit 46 ODI hundreds, a T20I century and 27 Test hundreds so far.
"In case he plays, 5 or 6 years, he will get to the 100. There's no doubt about it. His average is about 6-6 hundreds a year. So if that happens, then surely he can add another 26 hundreds in the next 5-6 years, if he plays till 40," Gavaskar quoted as saying by India Today.
"Sachin Tendulkar also played till his 40s and he had kept his fitness. Kohli is very aware of his fitness. He is still, the fastest runner between wickets in this Indian team. Only when MSD was there, you could say, MS Dhoni was as quick, if not quicker. Today, at this age, he beats the youngsters hands down. Converting 1s into 2s, and 2s into 3s, he is an absolute champion at that. And not just his runs, but for his partners as well.
"So with that kind of fitness, for him to play till 40 would not be a surprise at all," he added.
According to Gavaskar, Kohli will have no problem continuing to play international cricket for another 6 years, citing that it's the love for the game that keeps a player going.
"I don't think so (problem playing all formats and IPL). It's your love for the game that sustains you. Sometimes, it's that love for the game that keeps your going for a year or two more than you should.
"If your love for the game is there, you can go for a long time. When that is there, I don't think there is any worry about lasting long," Gavaskar remarked.
