愛污传媒

Skip to main content

India superstar Virat Kohli makes history at Cricket World Cup with record 50th ODI century

Share
MUMBAI, India -

For Virat Kohli, his latest record-breaking moment couldn't have been scripted any better.

As he got up off his knees, removed his helmet and took in the acclaim of the Mumbai crowd after reaching his record 50th ODI century, the India superstar looked up to his wife -- movie actress Anushka Sharma -- and blew her kisses.

He bowed toward Sachin Tendulkar, his cricketing hero and the man whose record he'd just broken inside the Wankhede stadium.

Before long, he'd be congratulated by soccer icon David Beckham, who couldn't have timed his first trip to India any better.

"If I could paint the perfect picture," Kohli said, "I would want this to be the picture."

Kohli hit his landmark hundred in the Cricket World Cup semifinals against New Zealand on Wednesday, continuing his dominance of a tournament he is making his own.

There've been unbeaten knocks of 103 against Bangladesh and 101 against South Africa but this innings of 117 was the most special, breaking a record many believed was there to stay.

The 50-year-old Tendulkar, the highest run-scorer in ODI and test cricket, had scored his 49 ODI centuries in 452 innings. Kohli, remarkably, has overtaken that landmark in 279 innings and in his 291st ODI.

Tendulkar was his childhood cricket idol. In 2011, Tendulkar carried Kohli on his shoulders around the Wankhede after India won its second World Cup title.

So no wonder Kohli was emotional Wednesday after flicking New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson to backward square leg for two runs to bring up his hundred. He raised his arms aloft while leaping high, then sank to his knees and looked to the sky.

"To witness a piece of history with the atmosphere today, it's goose bumps," said Beckham, who is in India in his role as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF and was taking in his first Cricket World Cup game. "Before the match even started, you walk out here and feel there's something special happening.

"I'm lucky to be here."

Kohli called it the "stuff of dreams."

"My life partner, the person I love the most, she is sitting there," he said. "My hero, he is sitting there. I was able to get the 50th in front of all of them in this historic venue."

The 35-year-old Kohli, nicknamed "The King" in India and arguably the world's most famous cricketer, is 15 years into his ODI career.

He scored his first hundred in the format -- 107 off 114 balls -- against Sri Lanka at Kolkata in December 2009 and rose to stardom with 133 not out off 86 balls against Sri Lanka at Hobart in a tri-series also involving Australia.

He scored a career-high 183 against Pakistan in 2012 then notched the fastest-ever ODI hundred for an Indian batter -- off just 52 balls -- against Australia at Jaipur in October 2013.

While Kohli has scored three hundreds in the current tournament, he had previously made only two hundreds in his three previous World Cups.

He finished the group stage as the top run-scorer in the tournament with 594 and averaging exactly 99. That figure is now up to 101.57.

"All this for me feels like a dream, honestly," Kohli said. "It's too good to be true. I never thought I'd be here in my career.

"Big game today and I had to play the role I've played throughout the tournament so the guys around me can go and express themselves. Just glad that everything has come together so nicely."

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Elections BC released its first partial results of the final count in B.C.'s 2024 provincial election Saturday afternoon, and the data shows NDP candidates gaining in some tight races.

Huntsville OPP and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) are conducting a homicide investigation after three individuals were found dead in a Huntsville neighbourhood Friday evening.

Angela Salvatore had been away from her father's hospital bedside for just over an hour when she says she got a frantic call from a nurse, pleading with her to calm him down.

Ontario Provincial Police say a 16-year-old has been charged with second-degree murder after a 15-year-old was found dead at a home in Perth, Ont. Friday afternoon.

Canadian Ryan James Wedding finished in 24th place in the parallel giant slalom at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, but the snowboarder wouldn鈥檛 go on to improve his results in Torino four years later.

A veteran Ottawa journalist is firing back against what he says are "entirely false" claims by a former Conservative cabinet minister that he acted as a Russian agent.

Local Spotlight

A new resident at a Manitoba animal rescue has waddled her way into people's hearts.

Hundreds of people ran to the music of German composer and pianist Beethoven Wednesday night in a unique race in Halifax.

He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

A meteor lit up our region's sky last night 鈥 with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.

Stay Connected