Is Virat Kohli the new God of cricket? Here’s what the numbers say

Team India, one of the cricketing powerhouses, has, time and again, produced exceptional talents who have gone on to cement their position among all-time greats of the sport.

However, very few come close to the one-and-only ‘God of Cricket’ Sachin Tendulkar, who has amassed more than 34,000 runs in 600+ international matches while winning a plethora of other individual records.

Recently, former Team India cricket team captain Virat Kohli has emerged as the contender for the title and has come to be known as the ‘new God of cricket’, for his phenomenal accomplishments in the sport since making his international debut in 2008.

New God of cricket - Virat Kohli records

Virat Kohli’s India debut and early years (2008-2014)

Virat Kohli made his international debut in August 2008 against Sri Lanka on the back of a successful stint with the under-19 side, during which he guided his team to the 2008 under-19 World Cup glory.

After struggling initially, the right-handed batter registered his first international century in 2009 against the Lankans.

He was India's leading run-getter in ODIs in 2010, with 995 runs from 25 matches at an average of 47.38. He scored three centuries and seven fifties in what can be described as his breakthrough year and made it to the 15-man squad for the ICC World Cup in 2011.

Interestingly, Virat Kohli finished as the leading run-scorer in ODIs for Team India every year from 2010 to 2016.

In the 2011 World Cup, the Delhi-born cricketer scored 282 runs in nine matches, including one ton and half-century. He scored 35 runs in the tricky run chase in the final, which he described as the most important ‘35’ he has ever scored.

Virat Kohli became the mainstay in the Indian team and eventually took over the Test captaincy from MS Dhoni in 2014. 

Virat Kohli as captain (2014-2022)

Filling MS Dhoni’s shoes as the Indian team’s captain is not everyone’s cup of tea, but Virat Kohli took up the challenge and performed his duties with immense success.

He also became the fourth Indian to score a hundred on his Test captaincy debut, when he registered a three-figure score in the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in December 2014.

Kohli captained India in 68 Test matches between 2014 and 2022, winning 40 and losing just 17. 

The Indian cricket team also became one of the most feared opponents to play against in limited-overs matches under Virat Kohli. 

Kohli powered India to 30 wins in 50 T20Is and 65 wins in 95 ODIs as India ushered in a period of sheer dominance in world cricket. 

In this time span, he also became the fastest Indian to reach 1000, 5000, 6000, 7000, 8000, 9000, and 10,000 runs in ODIs in addition to becoming the leading run-scorer in T20 internationals. He also boasted the best average in T20Is.

Post captaincy era (2022-present)

Virat Kohli relinquished captaincy from all formats of cricket in January 2022, marking the end to a glorious eight-year tenure as Indian team captain.

Kohli’s form in the past few years hasn’t quite matched up to his usual high standards but the stylish right hander did finish as the leading run-getter in the T20 World Cup 2022, scoring 296 runs in six matches at a breathtaking average of 98.66.

Photo credit: Alamy