Former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly refrained from commenting on the Sachin Tendulkar vs Virat Kohli debate but was appreciative of the star batter after his 45th ODI century against Sri Lanka in the first ODI.
Kohli is now just four more tons behind Tendulkar's record for the most ODI centuries and he took a step closer to the achievement after his impressive 113 in Guwahati on December 10. It was his second century in as many ODIs, as the former skipper helped India set an unassailable target.
During a promotional event, Ganguly was asked a question related to the Tendulkar vs Kohli debate. After initially dodging the question, the former skipper of Team India went on to hail Kohli as a fantastic player and said that his feat of 45 hundreds isn't a mere one.
Ganguly added that Kohli is a special player even if there will be periods when he will not score a lot of runs.
"It's a difficult question to answer. Kohli is a fantastic player. He's played many such innings, 45 hundreds don't happen like this. He's a special talent. There will be periods when he will not score, but he's a special player," said Ganguly.
Former India opener Gautam Gambhir also commented on Kohli after his hundred and tipped the star batter to go past Tendulkar's record in the ODI format.
"It's not about the record, honestly. Virat Kohli will go on to get many more centuries than Sachin Tendulkar in the 50-overs format. See, the rules have changed," Gambhir said on the Cricket Show on Star Sports.
"You should not compare eras. It's not fair to compare eras as well where there was one new ball as compared to now when there are 2 new balls with five fielders inside. But yes, he has been a master in this format and he has shown it over such a long period of time," he added.
