Business Standard

Virat Kohli's 500th match: A look at major milestones of his journey

Virat Kohli will be the fifth Indian and 10th cricketer in the entire world to represent their country in 500 international matches

Virat Kohli

Kohli will become only the fourth Indian after Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Rahul Dravid to represent India in 500 international matches.

BS Web Team New Delhi
India's premier batter Virat Kohli will play his 500th international match on Thursday (July 20, 2023) when he will take the field for India vs West Indies' second Test in Port of Spain. Kohli will become only the fourth Indian after Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Rahul Dravid to represent India in 500 international matches. Overall, he is the 10th cricketer worldwide to achieve the milestone.

Players with more than 500 international matches for India 

Player Matches Runs Centuries Fifties
         
Sachin Tendulkar 664 34,357 100 164
MS Dhoni 538 17266 16 108
Rahul Dravid 509 24208 48 146
 
*Source: ESPNcricinfo

Players (Non-Indian) with more than 500 international matches

Player Country Matches Runs Wickets Hundreds Fifties
             
Mahela Jayawardene Sri Lanka 652 25957 14 54 136
Kumar Sangakkara Sri Lanka 594 28016 00 63 153
Sanath Jayasuriya Sri Lanka 586 21032 440 42 103
Ricky Ponting Australia 560 27483 08 71 146
Shahid Afridi Pakistan 524 11196 541 11 51
Jacques Kallis South Africa 519 25534 577 62 149
*Source: ESPNcricinfo

Rahul Dravid on Virat Kohli's 500th International match

Kohli, 34, is one of the most popular global cricketers. He is however going through a lean patch. The former India captain has scored only one Test century since November 2019. His only century also came on a flat deck in Ahmedabad against Australia.

However, the records he has created in his 15-year-old career speak highly of the Delhi-born cricketer. It’s not only the records, even fellow cricketers and the Indian cricket team’s national coach Rahul Dravid believes that Kohli is an inspiration.  

“You don’t have to say anything. Just by the way you conduct yourself, the way you go about practices, your fitness, [that] becomes an inspiration for a lot of other young players who are coming through the system. Hopefully, they follow that and they are inspired by Virat to play so many games,” Dravid said on the eve of India vs West Indies 2nd Test. 

“Longevity comes with a lot of hard work, discipline, and adaptability. He’s shown all of that, so long may it continue," the Indian coach wished for Kohli. 

Dravid, who has also played more than 500 international matches for India himself, feels that the effort that Kohli makes after the end of every match and before the start of another one is something that has pushed him to the greatness that he has achieved so far. 

"The effort and work that he puts in behind the scene when no one is watching is incredible. I think that has carried him to play 500 games, he is very fit and still going very strong. That's not easy, he has made a lot of sacrifices and put in a lot of hard work,” Dravid added. 

Virat Kohli’s Career Stats

. Tests ODIs T20Is
Matches 110 274 115
Runs 8555 12898 4008
Average 48.88 57.32 52.73
Centuries 28 46 01
Fifties 29 65 37
Strikae Rate 55.18 93.62 137.96
Wickets 00 04 04
*Source: ESPNcricinfo

Other notable achievements of Virat Kohli in numbers

7- Most Double centuries for India 
8555- Fifth in the list of most-runs in Tests for India
12898- Second in the list of highest ODI run-getters for India  
4008- Leading run-scorer in T20Is in the world
25461- Second-highest run scorer in the history of international cricket
75- Second highest in the list of most-centuries by a player in international cricket

Don't miss the most important news and views of the day. Get them on our Telegram channel

First Published: Jul 20 2023 | 3:24 PM IST

Explore News