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‘Lightning Fast…,’ AB De Villiers On Virat Kohli Equalling Tendulkar’s 49 ODI Tons 

image-losjdjbmVirat Kohli celebrating his 49th ODI century at the 2023 World Cup (AP)

Virat Kohli punched out 101 unbeaten runs against South Africa at the 2023 World Cup to chart his 49th ODI century. The innings fueled India’s emphatic 243-run win over the Proteas, and also brought the cricketer on levelling terms with the legendary Sachin Tendulkar for the all-time world record.

Kohli’s former RCB teammate and close friend AB de Villiers recently congratulated the Indian batting veteran for his latest achievement, and acknowledged the much-quicker time it took him to emulate Tendulkar.

AB de Villiers remarks on Kohli’s 49th ton

Former South African captain and a batting legend himself, AB de Villiers recently praised Virat Kohli for taking just 277 ODI innings to get to Sachin Tendulkar’s world record of 49 centuries.While the former RCB cricketer acknowledged the generation gap between the two Indian batters, he claimed that getting to 49 tons in just 277 innings is still lightning fast, regardless of modern-day cricket’s familiarity with fast-paced action and batting-friendly conditions.

Taking to his YouTube channel, AB de Villiers said:

“It has taken Virat 277 innings to get to 49 hundreds. That is very quick even though it’s a new generation kind of thing that is lightning fast.”

Notably, AB de Villiers attended Kolkata’s Eden Gardens to witness Kohli’s match-winning effort against South Africa firsthand. The Proteas legend expressed his admiration for the former Indian captain, but added that one should not compare his numbers with Sachin Tendulkar considering the latter played in a different era.

“I am very happy for Virat Kohli. It’s a new generation and you can’t really compare numbers, especially the time in which Sachin Tendulkar did it - 451 innings as against Virat Kohli’s 277. He’s done it in faster time, but the game has changed dramatically since Sachin played.”

Regardless, Virat Kohli now has the opportunity to go beyond Tendulkar’s number, as he alongside the rest of his Indian teammates brace themselves for their subsequent World Cup 2023 challenge against Netherlands.

The match, set to be played on November 12 in Bengaluru, marks India’s final league fixture before heading off to Mumbai for their imminent semi-final showdown against New Zealand.