Virat Kohli century: Mohammad Hafeez shares congratulations for 50th ODI ton days after calling star India batter 'selfish'

Former Pakistani all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez praised Virat Kohli as the Indian batter reached his 50th ODI century, setting a new record during the ODI World Cup 2023 semi-final against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday, November 15.

"Congratulations @imVkohli  on world record 50th ODI 💯 wow 😍👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼. Keep entertaining cricket fans around the world. Stay healthy & blessed #INDvNZ #CWC23," he wrote on x.com (formerly Twitter).

Hafeez's recent record follows his earlier criticism of Kohli's batting approach during the match against South Africa at Kolkata's Eden Gardens, where he accused Kohli of selfishness for opting to take singles instead of an aggressive approach while nearing his century.

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Expressing his perspective, Hafeez remarked, "I observed a sense of selfishness in Virat Kohli's batting for the third time in this World Cup. In the 49th over, he prioritized reaching his own hundred over the team's interest. Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, played selflessly for Team India."

Following Hafeez's comments, former cricketers Venkatesh Prasad and Michael Vaughan criticised his words. Dismissing Hafeez's remarks as 'nonsense,' Vaughan praised Kohli for his focused performance on a challenging batting pitch. "Come on @MHafeez22 !!! India have hammered 8 teams playing great cricket .. @imVkohli now has 49 tons and his last was an anchor role innings on a tricky pitch... His team won by over 200 !!!! This is utter nonsense.. #CWC2023 #India #Pakistan," he wrote.

Kohli secured his place in the history books as the first player to achieve 50 ODI hundreds. This milestone was reached during the ODI World Cup 2023 semi-final against New Zealand at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, November 15.

Leading the innings, the former Indian captain reached his century in 106 balls. Despite facing cramps in the 90s, Kohli successfully attained his milestone century, marking his third in the ongoing tournament.

He also surpassed Tendulkar and now holds the record for most runs in a single World Cup edition. Tendulkar scored 673 runs in the 2003 edition of the World Cup while Kohli now has 711 runs to his name.

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