Kohli smashed his 84th international century during the second South Africa ODI in Raipur.
The run-machine Virat Kohli is back to his smashing best. The 37-year-old has recently notched up two back-to-back ODI hundreds against South Africa. After his spectacular 135 in Ranchi just two days back, the former India captain has followed it up with another sublime 102 in Raipur.
Kohli’s latest ton in the IND vs SA 2nd ODI is his 84th century across the three formats. Fans around the globe are hopeful to witness the modern-day great surpassing the master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar’s magnificent, untouched feat of a hundred international centuries.
Just one and a half months ago, many had tried to write him off as Kohli registered consecutive ducks to kick off the Australia series. Notably, those two fixtures marked his return to competitive cricket since the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 Final in early June. But there is no stopping Virat Kohli once the batter gets to his full flow.
The chase master once again silenced the debate around his form by notching up a remarkable 168 not out partnership with Rohit Sharma in the series final. His 74*-run knock proved to be pivotal as India were on the verge of suffering their maiden ODI whitewash on Australian soil. Moreover, the Men in Blue’s formidable No. 4 batter, vice captain Shreyas Iyer, was also unavailable in the lineup due to his unfortunate rib injury while fielding in the first innings.
However, just a little more than 30 days later, the fans once again got the chance to witness the aggressive leap of Kohli as the JSCA International Stadium celebrated his 83rd international ton. This innings showcased the ex-skipper’s attacking gameplay, including a total of seven over-boundaries and 11 fours.
Kohli continued the similar blazing momentum in the 2nd IND vs SA ODI as well. Coming into the crease in the fifth over, he took only 90 deliveries to get to the milestone. His 102-run knock was laced with seven boundaries and two maximums as the batter stitched a brisk 195-run partnership with Ruturaj Gaikwad (105) off just 156 balls.
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After hanging up his boots in the shortest and longest formats of the game, the stalwart now dons the Indian blue only in the 50-over fixtures. Further, there is also speculation around whether Kohli would continue to play after the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027, considering his age.
This has made his pathway to a ton of international centuries difficult to achieve, despite being just 16 hundreds away from the rare milestone. After the IND vs SA 2nd ODI, the batter will get the final match of the South Africa series in Visakhapatnam.
Next up, Kohli is set to feature in the six home ODI fixtures facing the Black Caps and Afghanistan in January and June 2026, respectively. Following this, he will get four three-match series in the second half of the upcoming year, against England, West Indies, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka.
This rounds up to almost 19 games before the marquee event and 11 fixtures of the World Cup, if the tournament follows the round-robin format and the side makes it to the final as well. Banking on Kohli’s blistering current form and a solid record against the Kiwis, fans should surely expect him to add a few more hundreds into the tally in the forthcoming series.
Notably, the 37-year-old also holds his best ODI average of 76.38 on South African soil, where the 2027 World Cup is scheduled to take place.
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