Virat Kohli is right at the top of the tree in the ODIs: Nasser Hussain | Cricket News
Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain has unanimously called Virat Kohli the best ODI cricketer of all time. Against Pakan on Sunday in the ongoing Champions Trophy, Virat Kohli became the fastest batter and third man to reach 14,000 runs. He powered the chase to finish on 100 not out — hitting the winning boundary — as India beat Pakan six wickets with 45 balls remaining.
“Virat Kohli in a run-chase in 50-over cricket, there’s been nobody better in the hory of the game, really,” said Michael Atherton on “Sky Sports Podcast”.
“51 century is an unbelievable number.”
India’s Sachin Tendulkar was the previous quickest batter to reach 14,000 ODI runs, taking 350 innings. Tendulkar still tops the overall ODI runs scored with 18,426 in 452 innings. Another retired batting great, Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakkara, finished his career with 14,234 runs in 380 innings.
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India’s Virat Kohli hits winning runs during the ICC Champions Trophy cricket match between India and Pakan at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025. (AP Photo)
“I mean, he’s got 51 and he passed 14,000 runs, which only Tendulkar and Sangakkara have got past that mark in one-day cricket,” said Atherton.
“And he got them in 60-odd innings quicker than Sachin, and I think about 90-odd innings quicker than Kumar. So, I mean, ODI is probably his best. You know, he’s been a great all-format player, clearly, but you’d probably say that ODI is his absolute best format,” he said.
Nasser Hussain also showered praise on Virat Kohli.
“He’s been an incredible player. Yeah, and you’d have to say probably the best player in ODIs of all time, really, with those stats you mentioned,” said Hussain.
“You’d have Tendulkar in the same conversation. Kumar, you’d have AB de Villiers. They’ve been some great ones, but he’s right at the top of the tree. Story continues below this ad
“If you ask India what did they want yesterday, beat Pakan and get Kohli back in nick, they’ve got both of those.”
