Virat Kohli continued his march towards attaining greatness, equalling the legendary Sachin Tendulkar's feat of most ODI centuries. The right-hander achieved this momentous feat of matching his idol's ODI century tally while batting in the India vs South Africa match in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 match at the Eden Gardens on November 5. It was Kohli's 49th century in ODIs, which helped him go level with Tendulkar, who too has the same number of hundreds in the format. This century was also Kohli's 79th hundred in international cricket. What's even more special is that he has got to the mark on the day he celebrated his 35th birthday. Interestingly, his first century had also come in Kolkata. Virat Kohli Receives a Rousing Reception As He Walks Out To Bat in IND vs SA ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Match, Video Goes Viral.

The 35-year-old achieved this feat in front of a packed Eden Gardens crowd and did it in remarkably less number of innings than what Tendulkar had taken to score 49 ODI hundreds (452 innings). Kohli got to the mark in 277 innings. Next to Kohli and Tendulkar on the list of most ODI centuries, is Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who has 31 hundreds in ODI cricket to his name. Australian great Ricky Ponting (30) and Sri Lankan legend Sanath Jayasuriya (28) follow the 'Hitman' on this list. Hashim Amla makes up the top five, with the Proteas stalwart having scored 27 ODI hundreds in a stellar career. Virat Kohli Birthday Special: Kolkata Cricket Fans Celebrate Star Indian Batsman’s Birthday With 35-Foot Banner.

Players With Most Hundreds in ODI Cricket: 

Player No of ODI centuries
Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli (India) 49
Rohit Sharma (India) 31
Ricky Ponting (Australia) 30
Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka) 28
Hashim Amla (South Africa) 27

Kohli had gotten agonisingly close to reaching the three-figure mark on a number of occasions in ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. Against Australia, he soaked in all the pressure and fell for a gritty 85 en route to a 48th ODI ton after ensuring that India crossed the line with ease. He finally scored his 48th ODI century against Bangladesh in a match in which he finished off with a six to take India to a dominant win. He went terribly close to a second hundred in ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 and what would have had him match Tendulkar's record against New Zealand, against whom he fell for 95. In India's match against Sri Lanka, Kohli finally looked to get to the feat when he was batting well on a decent Wankhede track. Yet, it was not to be for the modern-day great, who had to walk back with a knock of 88 runs after being dismissed by Dilshan Madushanka.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 05, 2023 05:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).