Virat Kohli Crosses 2,000-Run Mark for Fifth Time in a Calendar Year; Equals Sachin Tendulkar’s Record, Surpasses Sourav Ganguly, Ricky Ponting and Others
Whenever Virat Kohli comes out to bat in the middle, a record or two are likely to be made or broken. The century saw him join an elite list of players, who have scored more than 2,000 runs in a calendar year consecutively.
Whenever Virat Kohli comes out to bat in the middle, a record or two are likely to be made. The Indian skipper scored a magnificent hundred (140 runs off 107 balls), as India secured a win in the first ODI against West Indies at Guwahati. The century saw him join an elite list of players, who have scored more than 2,000 runs in a calendar year, consecutively.
Virat Kohli scored yet another century, this was his 36th ODI ton, on Monday, which saw the stylish batsman cross the 2,000 run mark in a calendar year. During his innings of 140 runs, Kohli breached the 2,000-run barrier for the fifth time in his career. India vs West Indies 1st ODI: Virat Kohli Feels Bowlers Could Have Performed Better.
The matter of joy for the Indian batsman wasn’t just about crossing the mark for the fifth time. But, it was more about how consistent he has been over the years, and it was the third time consecutively when Virat Kohli surpassed the 2,000 runs in a calendar year! Rohit Sharma Surpasses Sachin Tendulkar, David Warner; List of Top 5 Batsmen With Most 150+ Scores in ODI History.
With the century, Kohli joined the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, AB de Villiers, Matthew Hayden, Kumar Sangakkara and others batting greats. We take a look at the list of batsman who has scored more than 2,000 runs in a calendar year, in international cricket.
List of Batsmen Who Have Scored More Than 2,000 Runs in a Calendar Year:
| Sr. No. | Player | No. of Times | Years |
| 1. | Kumar Sangakkara
(Sri Lanka) |
6 | 2014, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2004 |
| 2. | Virat Kohli
(India) |
5 | 2017, 2016, 2014, 2012, 2018 |
| 3. | Sachin Tendulkar
(India) |
5 | 1998, 1996, 2007, 2002, 1997 |
| 4. | Mahela Jayawardene
(Sri Lanka) |
5 | 2001, 2007, 2006, 2009, 2014 |
| 5. | Sourav Ganguly
(India) |
4 | 1999, 2007, 1997, 2002 |
| 6. | Ricky Ponting
(Australia) |
4 | 2005, 2003, 2006, 2009 |
| 7. | Matthew Hayden
(Australia) |
4 | 2003, 2007, 2004, 2002 |
| 8. | Jacques Kallis
(South Africa) |
4 | 2007, 2000, 2004, 2010 |
| 9. | Joe Root
(England) |
3 | 2016, 2015, 2017 |
| 10. | Mohd. Yousuf
(Pakistan) |
3 | 2002, 2000, 2006 |
Skipper Virat Kohli needed only 42 runs to cross the mark before the first match against West Indies, on Sunday. The talismanic batsman is on par with Sachin Tendulkar, and keeping his current form and consistency in mind, one can surely say that Kohli will overtake Kumar Sangakkara’s feat of scoring 2,000 runs more than six times in cricket history!
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 22, 2018 11:53 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).