Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes Virat Kohli has a strong chance of becoming the all-time leading run-scorer in ODIs. Kohli recently scored an unbeaten 100 against Pakistan in Dubai, making him the third player to surpass 14,000 ODI runs. He has already overtaken Ponting and is now just 149 runs behind Kumar Sangakkara. However, he still trails Sachin Tendulkar’s record by 4,341 runs.
Speaking on the ICC Review Podcast, Ponting said Kohli’s hunger for records makes him a serious contender for the milestone. “You never write off someone like Virat. Now that he has passed me and has only two players ahead, he will want to give himself the best chance to be remembered as the leading run-scorer.” He added that Kohli’s fitness and commitment would be crucial in achieving this feat.
Ponting also praised Kohli as the greatest 50-over player he has seen. “I’ve said before that I don’t think I’ve seen a better ODI player than Virat Kohli. Yet, despite being at the top for so long, he’s still 4,000 runs behind Sachin, which shows Tendulkar’s greatness and longevity.”
Kohli’s recent form had been a concern after a lean Border-Gavaskar Trophy and moderate ODI performances against England. He also scored just 22 in India’s Champions Trophy opener against Bangladesh. However, Ponting was not surprised by Kohli’s century against Pakistan. “Big players step up in big games, and no match is bigger for India than facing Pakistan,” he said. “Once again, Kohli delivered when his team needed him most.”
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