Virat Kohli made history by playing his 300th ODI for India in a match against New Zealand, becoming the 7th Indian and 18th player globally to reach this milestone. Notably, he is the first player to participate in over 300 ODIs while also having played at least 100 matches in both Tests and T20Is. Prior to this match, Kohli had scored 14,085 runs at an impressive average of 58.20. Despite only adding 11 runs in his 300th game, he holds records for being the fastest to reach several run milestones. Kohli came off a recent century against Pakistan, looking to regain form.
Virat Kohli, the stalwart of Indian cricket, etched his name once more in the annals of cricket history on Sunday by playing in his 300th ODI match. As India faced New Zealand in their last encounter of the ICC Champions Trophy Group A, a landmark moment awaited Kohli. Having also competed against the Kiwis in his 200th ODI, he has now become the 7th Indian and 18th player overall to surpass the 300 ODIs milestone. A unique historic moment was also in store for Virat as he stepped onto the field for his 300th one-day international game. (India vs New Zealand LIVE Updates)
In addition to marking his 300th ODI, Kohli has distinguished himself as the first cricketer to play in 300 one-day internationals after having participated in at least 100 Tests and 100 T20Is. Globally, 18 players have reached the 300 ODIs landmark for their nations, but none of them have featured in 100 matches in each of the other two formats of international cricket.
List of players to have played 300 ODIs:
- Shahid Afridi: 398
- Inzamam-ul-Haq: 378
- Ricky Ponting: 375
- Wasim Akram: 356
- MS Dhoni: 350
- M Muralidaran: 350
- R Dravid: 344
- M Azharuddin: 334
- T Dilshan: 330
- Jacques Kallis: 328
- Steve Waugh: 325
- Chaminda Vaas: 322
- Sourav Ganguly: 311
- Aravinda de Silva: 308
- Yuvraj Singh: 304
- Shaun Pollock: 303
- Chris Gayle: 301
- Virat Kohli: 300*
Prior to facing New Zealand, in 299 ODIs, Virat had accumulated 14,085 runs, boasting an impressive average of 58.20 and a strike rate of 93.41. In his 300th ODI, however, he managed to score only 11 runs.
Kohli has set numerous records throughout his career on the way to 14,000 runs in ODI cricket. He is the fastest player to reach milestones of 8,000 runs (175 innings), 9,000 runs (194 innings), 10,000 runs (205 innings), 11,000 runs (222 innings), 12,000 runs (242 innings), 13,000 runs (287 innings), and 14,000 runs (299 innings) in the 50-over format for India.
He entered the New Zealand match after scoring a century against Pakistan in India’s preceding group match. Though Kohli has struggled for consistency recently, he once more demonstrated that the 50-over format best suits his capabilities, marking his 51st career ODI century against India’s traditional rivals in Dubai last Sunday.
Nonetheless, New Zealand proves to be the most formidable opponent India has encountered in the tournament thus far. Both Rohit Sharma’s team and the Kiwis have remained unbeaten in the Champions Trophy up to this point. In fact, they also triumphed in the tri-nation ODI series that included Pakistan and South Africa before the Champions Trophy began.
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