Indian cricket legend Virat Kohli is celebrating his 36th birthday today after a year of highs and lows that saw him cement his legacy as one of the greatest to play the game. On his 35th birthday, Kohli scored the record-equalling 49th ODI century and, a few days later, scored the 50th ODI ton of his career to break Sachin Tendulkar's record.
However, less than a week later, his inspirational campaign in the 2023 World Cup went in vain as India lost the final to Australia. Later, Kohli returned to the sport and looked in fine touch during the short tour of South Africa, where the Test series ended in a 1-1 draw.
Kohli took a break from the sport and missed the home series against England. In this period, he also announced that he became a father for the second time with the birth of his son Akaay. In the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL), Kohli became the first Indian to win the orange cap twice with a sensational campaign that saw him score 741 runs in 15 matches at a strike-rate of 154.69.
Just a month later, Kohli was part of the Indian team that won the 2024 T20 World Cup and ended an 11-year wait for a global title. After a forgettable tournament with the bat, the former India captain won the Player of the Match (POTM) award in the final in a fairytale ending to his T20I career.
However, Kohli has struggled for runs since a horror display in the ODI series against Sri Lanka and the home Test series against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
Virat Kohli's Birthday – 10 Records That Will Never Be Broken
1) Most ODI Centuries: For many years, it was assumed that no one would break Sachin Tendulkar’s record (49) of most ODI centuries. However, Kohli climbed the Everest and completed 50 tons in the white-ball format last year. With the dramatic reduction in the number of ODI matches played, it is near impossible for anyone to get even close to the record.
2) India's Most Successful Test Captain:Virat Kohli is India’s most successful Test captain, with 40 wins in just 68 games. Only three captains in the world have won more games in the 147-year-old history of the longest format. It will take a monumental feat for anyone to lead the national team in red-ball cricket for a period as long as this and with the same success.
3) Fastest To 8000, 9000, 10000, 11000, 12000, 13000 ODI Runs: It is hard to argue against the fact that Virat Kohli is the greaetst ODI batter with his status as the quickest to 8000, 9000, 10000, 11000, 12000, and 13000 ODI runs proof the same. Only five players in ODI history have more than 13000 runs in the longest format and with the number of game decrease, it will take a miracle for this record to be broken .
4) Most Player of the Series Awards: Virat Kohli has won the Player of the Series (POTS) awards a total of 21 times in his career across format. While Sachin Tendulkar (20) is second on the list, the closest active player is Shakib Al Hasan (17), who has already quit two formats and likely to bid adieu to ODIs after the 2025 Champions Trophy. No other active player has more than 12 POTS awards (R Ashwin) meaning Kohli’s is set to stay top for a long time.
5) Most Hundreds Against One Team: Virat Kohli is the only player to score 10 ODI centuries against the same opponent (Sri Lanka). He has also nine tons against West Indies and eight against Australia. Sachin Tendulkar is second on the list with nine centuries against Australia. Even Rohit Sharma has eight tons against Australia and is the only threat to Kohli’s supremacy.
6) Most Runs In A Single Edition Of ODI World Cup: Virat Kohli’s incredible 2023 World Cup campaign that saw him score 765 runs saw him break Sachin Tendulkar’s 20-year-old record (673 runs in the 2003 World Cup) for the most runs in a single edition of the tournament. While Tendulkar’s record seemed a bridge too far, Kohli has 100 more runs to his tally, and it will need a monumental effort to go past his tally in the quadrenniel tournament.
7) Indian Player To Score 600+ Runs Most Times In A Test Series: Virat Kohli is just one of five players to score 600 or more runs in a Test series series thrice or more. Only Don Bradman (6) has crossed the tally more than that the Indian cricket great. Brian Lara, Neil Harvey, and Gary Sobers are equal with Kohli to achieve the feat thrice. Kohli crossed the 600-run mark against Australia (2014-15), England (2016), and Sri Lanka (2017).
8) Only Player To Win Player of the Tournament in Both ODI and T20 World Cup: Virat Kohli is the only player in history to win a Player of the Tournament (POTT) award in both the ODI and T20 World Cup. Kohli won the prize in the T20 World Cup twice (2014, 2016) as well as the 2023 ODI World Cup. In fact, no other player has won a POTT award more than once at an ICC event.