- Monday, November 25, 2024
Kohli took only 277 innings to complete 49 centuries in the 50-over format as against Tendulkar’s 451.
By: Shubham Ghosh
AFTER Virat Kohli equalled the legendary Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 one-day international hundreds by slamming an unbeaten 101 against South Africa in the ongoing ICC Men’s World Cup at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday (5), an old video about the latter’s ‘prophesy’ 11 years ago.
In the video from 2012, Indian actor Salman Khan was seen asking Tendulkar in an event about any other cricketer having the potential of breaking his record and the latter said there were youngsters in the room where they were who could do it. When Khan insisted on the names, Tendulkar, then 39, took the names of Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who is currently leading the Indian side in the World Cup.
A user named Ishan Joshi posted the video on X which he captioned, “Sachin Tendulkar had predicted this way back in 2012 about #ViratKohli and #RohitSharma. God of Cricket for a reason.”
Sachin Tendulkar had predicted this way back in 2012 about #ViratKohli and #RohitSharma ??
– God of Cricket for a reason ???#INDvsSL #CWC23 pic.twitter.com/WGzCui4clN
— Ishan Joshi (@ishanjoshii) November 2, 2023
In the video, when Khan asked Tendulkar, who was sitting beside Nita Ambani, entrepreneur wife of Indian tycoon Mukesh Ambani among the audience about a cricketer who had the potential of bettering his record, the former cricketer said, “I think isi room me baithe hue hain hamare youngsters. Mujhe nazar aa rhe hain youngsters jo bilkul kar sakte hain. Virat and Rohit are the ones [I believe young talents in this very room have what it takes. I can see the youngsters who can certainly achieve it. Virat and Rohit are the ones].” He was standing and hinting at Kohli and Sharma, who were then in their 20s.
Kohli, who turned 35 the same day he hit the 49th ton, was seen in the video, smiling.
It is a matter of time before Kohli breaks the record and becomes the first batter to score 50 one-day international hundreds.
Tendulkar scored his 49th one-day international and 100th international hundred the same year. He played his final one-day international in 2012 and bid adieu to international cricket in 2013.
Kohli, who said after his 49th century that he could never be another Tendulkar, has 79 international tons at the moment, 21 less than his predecessor.
Sharma, one of the world’s best white-ball batters at the moment, is the third in the list of Indians with most number of one-day international hundreds — 31.
The video about Tendulkar’s prediction was shared on November 2, three days before Kohli equalled him, and has garnered more than 74,000 views at the time of writing this report.
