Virat Kohli is second on ICC rankings for ODI batters.
Recently, veteran batter Virat Kohli made a grand return to the domestic circuit, hitting a century in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26. He carried that form in the IND vs NZ ODI series and broke another record of being the fastest to 28,000 international runs. He surpassed Sachin Tendulkar with a crackling four down the pitch off India-origin spinner, Adithya Ashok. At the time of this record, he was batting at 27 off 20 balls.
The former India captain passed Sachin Tendulkar, becoming the quickest player to reach 28,000 international runs. He reached the mark in his 624th international innings, beating Tendulkar’s record of 644 innings. Before the IND vs NZ 1st ODI, Virat Kohli was just 25 runs away from getting to 28,000.
Kohli went on to score 93 off 91 to guide India’s win. In the process, he also surpassed Kumar Sangakkara in the list of most runs in international career. At the start of the match, Kohli was 41 runs behind the Sri Lankan legend, and acquired the third spot. Now, he’s climbed up the ladder, and he is 6,000+ runs away from Tendulkar at the top.
Earlier, Virat Kohli had scored 27,975 runs with an average of 52.54, including 84 centuries across all games. These runs are divided into 9,230 runs in Tests, 14,582 in ODIs, and 4,188 in T20Is, with his highest score being 254 not out.
The 37-year-old reached the record with his usual skill, keeping up the good form he showed during the South Africa ODIs last year, where he scored consecutive hundreds before scoring a brisk fifty in the last match.
This accomplishment is another feather in Kohli’s cap, where he has broken Tendulkar’s records throughout his career. During the World Cup 2023, Kohli overtook Tendulkar’s record of most ODI hundreds, 49, at his own den at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Currently, Kohli owns a total of 53 ODI hundreds.
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Virat Kohli’s strong show in ODIs since 2023 has been notable, especially after a lean patch from 2019 to 2021. In 2025 alone, Kohli scored 651 runs in 13 matches, averaging an impressive 65.10, with three centuries and four half-centuries. With another ODI World Cup 2027 approaching quickly and limited matches to be played, every match holds a huge importance as Kohli focuses on adding another ICC title to his cabinet.
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