Virat Kohli is on the verge of setting yet another record that might never be surpassed as he plays his 500th game. Just 13 runs separate Kohli from his 500th international century. Kohli will become the first batsman to record a century in his 500th international match if he is able to reach the three-figure mark. At the conclusion of Day 1 of play, India’s run machine is batting on 87. After Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni, Kohli is the only cricketer from India to have played 500 international matches. Courtney Walsh, a former West Indian fast bowler, lauded Kohli and made comparisons to Javed Miandad and Sachin Tendulkar, among others.
Walsh compares Kohli to Sachin Tendulkar
Walsh while comparing Kohli and Sachin, said, “Well, as an Indian great, I would rate him just behind Sachin. Sachin is one of the greatest I have seen and played against.” The former fast bowler also compared Kohli with players from West Indies, Australia, England and Pakistan. Walsh while making the comparisons said, “Brian Lara, Viv Richards, I will put them up from a West Indian point of view. Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh. Two gentleman I played when I was a youngster. There are also Graham Gooch from England and Javed Miandad, against whom I probably did not as much games, but the value they put on their wickets reminded me of Virat Kohli as well. He doesn’t want to go. So I will definitely have him in my top 4, top 5 greatest cricketers I have seen.”
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IND vs WI
With an unbeaten 87 in the second test match, Kohli, who also scored 76 in India’s innings victory over the West Indies last week in Dominica, helped the team’s campaign in the third WTC cycle get off to a brilliant start. This was Kohli’s second fifty-plus score in a row while on tour.
When the West Indies selector was in control, Walsh recalled a conversation he had with Kohli and said that even then, he could sense greatness in the young cricketer. By participating in 111 Test matches for India and scoring over 9500 runs, as well as 274 ODI and 115 T20I appearances and amassing 12898 and 4008 runs, respectively, later in his illustrious career, Kohli was able to achieve new heights.
Walsh further added, “He has got the passion for the game, he wants to leave a mark in the game. I remember having a conversation with him when I was the selector for West Indies, and he was the captain. We were having a chat. You could tell that he wants to be the best. He was willing to seek out advice from anyone that will help to do so. I am not surprised by the achievement. The passion he has and the drive he has to be the top 3, top 5 in everything he does.”
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