Virat Kohli created a new piece of history when he equalised Sachin Tendulkar's 49 ODI centuries, doing it in 175 innings during their match against South Africa on his 35th birthday at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, November 5. The century only improved Kohli's case as one of the greatest cricketers in recent times.
This is the former India skipper's second ton of the tournament and fourth in 50-over World Cups. He he now scored 543 runs at this edition of the World Cup at an imposing average of 108.60.
After his achievement, Tendulkar took to x.com (formerly Twitter) to share his appreciation for Kohli after he broke the record.
Tendulkar tweeted: “Well played Virat. It took me 365 days to go from 49 to 50 earlier this year. I hope you go from 49 to 50 and break my record in the next few days. Congratulations!!”
In response to this, Kohli told bcci.tv, "I aspire to do the same thing, as then we have more chances of winning. So, I would love to do it a few more times in this tournament, especially the semis and final."
He also spoke about breaking the record, and what it meant to him. "Grew up idolising him. I aspired to play for India watching him play. Just to equal his record in ODIs is a surreal moment for me. I never thought, in my wildest dreams, that I'll get here. so, I just feel blessed and grateful. For me, he is always going to be number one, regardless of what happens," revealed Kohli.
"I'm just happy that my journey has come so far and I have been able to make it till here and to win matches for my country like he did," he added.
Completing the milestone on his birthday, he was happy about giving the gift back to the fans as a return gift. "I am much happier to be in a position where I am not receiving gifts, rather I play well and make everyone else happy because it gets a little tough to take wishes for my birthday. So this is a return gift for everyone on my birthday," he said.
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