Kohli equals Tendulkar record with 49th ODI ton

KOLKATA Agencies): Virat Kohli equalled the record of fellow India great Sachin Tendulkar after hitting his 49th one-day international century in a World Cup match against South Africa in Kolkata.

Kohli, on his 35th birthday, hit 101 from 121 balls to send the crowd at a packed Eden Gardens into a frenzy.

Tendulkar reached the milestone in 451 innings and 462 matches, while it has taken Kohli 277 innings and 289 ODIs.

Kohli’s superb knock helped India post 326-5 from their 50 overs.

He is also now the second-highest run-scorer at the tournament with 543 and may also have one eye on breaking Tendulkar’s record for most runs at a single World Cup, which stands at 673.

“Every opportunity to play for India is a big one and to do this on my birthday in front of a huge crowd is the stuff of dreams. It is something you dream about as a child,” said Kohli, whose innings included 10 fours. “I am just happy to help the team as much as possible.”

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Tendulkar said: “Well played Virat. It took me 365 days to go from 49 to 50 earlier this year. I hope you go from 49 to 50 and break my record in the next few days. Congratulations!”.

Eden Gardens became a sea of light as the crowd lit up their mobile phones in anticipation when Ravindra Jadeja nudged a single off Kagiso Rabada to bring Kohli on strike on 99 in the 49th over.

Kohli pushed the next ball to cover for a single to spark huge celebrations in the stands, with Kohli calmly raising his bat before taking off his helmet and looking to the sky.