Virat Kohli Can Surpass Sachin Tendulkar's ODI World Record: Ricky Ponting

Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting recently expressed confidence in Virat Kohli's ability to become the all-time leading run-scorer in ODIs. Virat Kohli who notched a century against Pakistan marked his 82nd international century and his 51st in ODIs. Virat completed 14,000 runs in ODIs, following Kumar Sangakkara and Sachin Tendulkar.

Notably, Kohli achieved this milestone faster than anyone else, taking just 287 innings.

Virat Kohli's Record

Currently, Kohli is only 149 runs behind Sangakkara on the list of highest run-scorers in ODIs. It is anticipated that he will surpass this during the Champions Trophy. However, to become the all-time highest scorer in ODIs, he needs an additional 4,341 runs to overtake Sachin Tendulkar's record of 18,426 runs scored over 452 innings.

Ponting highlighted Kohli's determination and fitness as key factors that could help him achieve this record. "With someone like Virat, you never write him off," Ponting stated. He believes that Kohli is motivated by such records and will strive to be remembered as the all-time leading run-scorer.

Rickey Ponting Praises Virat Kohli's Skills

Ricky Ponting also praised Virat Kohli as potentially the best player ever in the 50-over format. He acknowledged Sachin Tendulkar's greatness but noted that despite being at his peak for so long, Kohli still has over 4,000 runs to catch up with Tendulkar.

Ponting remarked on how remarkable it is that despite Virat's consistent excellence over a long period, he remains significantly behind Sachin in terms of total runs. This highlights both Tendulkar's skill and longevity in cricket.

"Congratulations to him [Kohli]. He's obviously been a champion player for a long time," Ponting added. He emphasized how maintaining high performance levels over an extended period is a true measure of excellence.