Virat Kohli Eyes Big Milestone in 3rd ODI; One Century Away From Matching Babar Azam’s Record
Virat Kohli is on the verge of another remarkable milestone as he enters the 3rd ODI, needing just one more century to equal Babar Azam’s record. Here’s what to expect ahead of the crucial match.
Virat Kohli during an ODI match as he prepares to chase Babar Azam’s century record in the upcoming 3rd ODI.
Virat Kohli who is a star player for Team India is simply one century away from tying a prestigious world record which is held by the captain of Pakistan national team Babar Azam.
Virat Kohli's batting skills are still a major factor in the current India–South Africa ODI series. The 37-year-old batting legend has already made it to the list of match-winning hundreds in the first two ODIs played in Ranchi (November 30) and Raipur (December 3). As the series moves towards a very important finale in Visakhapatnam at the Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Stadium on Saturday, December 6, the question one would be the same: whether Kohli would break another record or not?
In case Kohli gets a century in the third ODI, he will be the second batter ever—after Babar Azam—to have three back-to-back ODI centuries on two occasions.
Kohli vs Babar: A Rivalry of Modern Greats
Babar Azam has achieved the rare feat twice in his ODI career, while Kohli has done it once before. Vizag offers Kohli a favourable stage—he has scored three centuries in seven ODIs at this venue, making it one of his most successful grounds.
A Rare Club of ODI Consistency
So far, 12 players have scored centuries in three consecutive ODI innings, but only Babar Azam has managed to repeat the feat. Kohli now has the golden opportunity to join him in this elite category.
Kohli is also inching closer to another milestone—the most 50+ scores in ODIs against South Africa. He currently has 15 such scores (7 hundreds, 8 fifties), the joint-most alongside Ricky Ponting and Kumar Sangakkara.
Most Consecutive ODI Centuries – Notable Players
- Zaheer Abbas
- Saeed Anwar
- Herschelle Gibbs
- AB de Villiers
- Quinton de Kock
- Ross Taylor
- Kumar Sangakkara (record holder with four in a row)
- Jonny Bairstow
- Virat Kohli
- Rohit Sharma
- Babar Azam
- Fakhar Zaman
Kumar Sangakkara holds the overall record with four consecutive ODI centuries, achieved during the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.
As India prepares for the series decider, Kohli’s form, hunger for runs and history-making ability once again take centre stage.
