How long will Virat Kohli play? Indian cricket team skipper had this to say | Cricket - Hindustan Times
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How long will Virat Kohli play? Indian cricket team skipper had this to say

Hindustan Times, Mumbai | ByDevarchit Varma
Feb 17, 2018 01:14 PM IST

Virat Kohli has put a cap on the number of years he wants to continue playing top-flight cricket after India clinched the ODI series against South Africa in Centurion on Friday.

Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli turned up the heat on the South Africans post his team’s defeat in the first two Tests of the tour. Bouncing back after a dismal start, Kohli went on to smash records and once again played a key role in India’s series win in ODIs. (HIGHLIGHTS)

Virat Kohli talked about how long he will continue to play cricket after he guided the Indian cricket team to a historic series win over South Africa in Centurion on Friday.(BCCI)
Virat Kohli talked about how long he will continue to play cricket after he guided the Indian cricket team to a historic series win over South Africa in Centurion on Friday.(BCCI)

Kohli was the only batsman from both sides to have scored a century in the Test series, and in the ODIs, he created the record of making most runs ever — a mind boggling 558 runs at an average of 186 with three centuries and one fifty — in a bilateral series. (SCORECARD)

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Even in the Test series, he towered over the rest of the batsmen from both teams with 286 runs in three matches at 47.66, with one century and a half-century.

But it was in the ODI series that his form delivered India their first-ever series win in South Africa, a feat that would have pleased the Indian run machine to the greatest extent. Post the conclusion of the sixth ODI on Friday, Kohli let out his heart and spoke about making most of the years left in him as a cricketer.

READ | ‘Freak, Rockstar, Fighter, Winner, Believer’ – Virat Kohli hailed for SA showing

“I have got eight or nine years left in my career and I want to make the most of every day. It’s a blessing that I am healthy and getting to captain my country,” Kohli expressed during the post-match presentation ceremony on Friday at Centurion.

In India’s chase of a modest target of 206, the 29-year-old Kohli was unrelenting as he went on to score his 35th ODI century — which helped him inch closer to batting legend Sachin Tendulkar’s record tally of 49 ODI tons.

READ | Virat Kohli fires at media again, says ‘can’t live in dreamland, praise doesn’t matter to me’

It was in late 2017 when Kohli had moved past Australian great Ricky Ponting’s total of 31 ODI centuries, eyeing the ultimate goal of Tendulkar’s record.

Kohli is the only batsman at the moment to be averaging 50 across formats. He averages 53.40 in Tests having scored 5,554 runs with 21 centuries and 16 fifties.

In ODIs, he has aimed his guns to breach the 10,000 run-mark. In 208 ODIs, the right-hander has amassed 9,588 runs at 58.10 with 35 tons and 46 fifites.

READ | Ravi Shastri tells media to ‘buy a dictionary’ to describe Virat Kohli’s cricket

Kohli’s record is equally impressive in T20Is, as he is the only batsman in the unpredictable slam-bang format to be averaging more than 40. He has 1,956 runs in 55 matches, studded with 18 fifties.

The Indian cricket team captain is right up there in ICC Rankings as well. In Tests, he’s second behind Australia’s Steven Smith, and in T20Is he’s ranked third. However, Kohli sits pretty at the top spot in ICC ODI Rankings for Batsmen.

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