India icon Virat Kohli continued his rich vein of form as he smashed a scintillating century in the third ODI against New Zealand at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore. Kohli almost pulled off a near impossible chase with only little help on offer with his stellar hundred that shattered a few records.
The 37-year-old made 124 from 108 balls and carried India’s hopes in the 338-run chase in Indore in the series decider. However, barring Nitish Kumar Reddy and Harshit Rana, Kohli did not receive support from the other end as the Men in Blue lost the game by 41 runs to concede an ODI series to New Zealand for the first time at home.
While Kohli’s ton went in vain, he shattered a few records, including one that was previously held by Ricky Ponting, after his stellar outing. After scoring 124 in the third ODI, Kohli now has hit the most runs at No.3 in history of ODI cricket.
Coming into the third clash, he had 12552 runs in 243 innings and was 110 runs behind Ponting. With his epic 124, he now tallies 12676 runs in 244 innings at No.3.
Most runs at No.3 in ODI cricket:
1 – Virat Kohli: 12676 runs in 244 innings
2 – Ricky Ponting: 12662 runs in 330 innings
3 – Kumar Sangakkara: 9747 runs in 238 innings
4 – Jacques Kallis: 7774 runs in 200 innings
5 – Kane Williamson: 6504 runs in 140 innings
Kohli shattered Tendulkar’s record
Meanwhile, Kohli had also shattered Tendulkar’s world record for centuries scored at most venues in ODI cricket. The Holkar Stadium is the 35th venue where Kohli has slammed a ton, making it one more than the Master Blaster.
Hundreds at most venues (ODIs):
35 – Virat Kohli
34 – Sachin Tendulkar
26 – Rohit Sharma
21 – Ricky Ponting
21 – Hashim Amla
21 – AB de Villiers
Meanwhile, Kohli had shattered another major record jointly held by Ponting and Virender Sehwag. This was his seventh ODI hundred against New Zealand, which are now the most by anyone against the Kiwis. He was earlier tied on six along with Ponting and Sehwag.
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