Former Indian cricketer and commentator Aakash Chopra has reckoned that the veteran Indian batter Virat Kohli will score 98 international centuries by the time he ends his career, falling two short of Sachin Tendulkar’s record tally of 100 international tons.
For the unversed, Kohli has scored 86 centuries so far, the most recent century coming in the first ODI against the West Indies at the Greenfield International Stadium in Trivandrum on Sunday, September 27.
On Sunday, Kohli also became only the second player after legendary Sachin Tendulkar to score 15,000 ODI runs. He is also the second-leading run-scorer with 28,527 runs in international cricket, behind Tendulkar’s 34,357 runs.
Further, Chopra predicted the veteran opening batter Rohit Sharma to score at an excellent strike rate in next year’s ODI World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, stating that the Hitman will finish with a strike rate of 106 in the mega event.
On the other hand, former Indian cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, who recently announced his retirement from all forms of the game, has reckoned that Kohli is well within his rights to try and break Tendulkar’s record 100 international tons.
“I think when Virat Kohli puts pressure on himself, that’s when he is at his best. In every innings, he has done that. He has those expectations of himself. That’s why he has been able to do it consistently for so many years. Knowing Virat, if he thinks about 100 centuries, there is nothing wrong with it, because his role model has been Sachin Tendulkar. So, I am sure he must be thinking about it,” Rahane said on Cricbuzz.
Both Kohli and Rohit will be in action on Saturday, October 3, in the third and final ODI of the three-game series against the West Indies in New Chandigarh.
