Former Indian captain Virat Kohli added another feather to his already illustrious cap on Sunday, as India faced South Africa in the series finale at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium. Kohli, who recently became India’s second-highest run-scorer in international cricket, has achieved another big record in the game’s shortest format. The former Indian captain finished unbeaten on 49 to ensure Rohit Sharma and company scored a huge total in the series decider.
In the second T20I between India and the Proteas, Kohli continued his sensational form in the shortest format by teaming up with an excellent Suryakumar Yadav. The batting pair broke a remarkable partnership record. In the high-scoring match at Guwahati, Kohli and Suryakumar both set new personal bests in batting.
In terms of balls faced, middle-order batsman Suryakumar completed 1,000 T20I runs the fastest, but former captain Kohli became the first Indian to reach 11,000 runs in the game’s shortest format. In the 17th over, which was bowled by South Africa’s Wayne Parnell, Kohli reached a significant milestone. To accomplish the exceptional achievement in style, Kohli smoked a gorgeous six.
In the history of T20 cricket, Kohli is the only fourth batsman to attain 11,000 runs. Only Chris Gayle (14,562), Kieron Pollard (11,915), and Shoaib Malik (11,902) are ahead of the 33-year-old on the exclusive list. Even though Kohli had a legendary career and achieved new heights, he was unable to complete his record-breaking half-century in the shortest format.
33 half-centuries have been recorded by Kohli during his impressive T20I career. The batsman has scored 3,712 runs for the 2007 global champions in 109 games. The legendary cricketer is second all-time in runs scored in T20 international matches. Rohit Sharma, the Indian captain, has scored 3,737 runs in 141 games, putting Kohli just behind him. In the second T20I, Kohli (49*) and Suryakumar (61 off 22 balls) led India to a 16-run victory over the Proteas.