IND vs BAN 2024: 5 milestones Virat Kohli can achieve in Test series against Bangladesh
Former Indian captain Virat Kohli will be next seen in cricketing action for the upcoming two-match Test series against the Bangladesh cricket team. The Test opener will get underway on September 19, Thursday at MA Chidambaram Stadium (Chepauk) in Chennai.
The second and final Test will be held on September 27, Friday at Green Park Stadium in Kanpur. The right-handed batsman was last seen in action during India’s tour of Sri Lanka where he featured in the three-match ODI series, which India lost by 2-0.
The senior pro who has got a pretty decent record against Bangladesh will be looking forward to making a telling impact with the bat. In this article, we will now take a look at the five milestones Virat Kohli can achieve in the Test series against Bangladesh.
1. 12 runs away from entering the elite club
Virat Kohli is just 11 runs away from becoming the only active player with 12,000 international runs at home. If he manages to achieve the feat in the upcoming Test series against Bangladesh, he will join the elite club featuring Sachin Tendulkar (14,192), Ricky Ponting (13,117), Jacques Kallis (12,305), and Kumar Sangakkara (12,043).
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2. 32 runs away from surpassing Cheteshwar Pujara’s record
Among the active Indian players, Cheteshwar Pujara holds the record for most runs in India vs Bangladesh Tests (468 runs). On the other hand, Virat Kohli, just only 32 runs behind. He is on the verge of becoming the top scorer in these encounters.
Pujara’s last Test appearance came against Australia in the ICC World Test Championship 2023 final before he was axed from the squad. With Pujara not in the Test set-up, it is very likely that Kohli will surpass him and become the new holder of this record.
3. Could surpass Sir Don Bradman’s Test century tally
India’s run-machine Virat Kohli is currently tied with Sir Don Bradman at 29 Test centuries. The senior pro has a great chance to score one more and surpass the legendary Australian. It remains to be seen how he will go about his work in the upcoming Test series against the Tigers.
4. Virat Kohli closing in on 9000 runs milestone
The former Indian captain scored 8848 runs in the longest format of the game at an average of 49.1. The seasoned cricketer is just 152 runs away from becoming the fourth Indian cricketer to score 9000 Test runs. Sachin Tendulkar (15921), Rahul Dravid (13265) and Sunil Gavaskar (10122) were the first three Indians to achieve this feat.
5. Fastest to 27,000 International Runs
For the record, Virat Kohli is only 58 runs away from completing 27,000 international runs. If he manages to achieve the feat in the upcoming Test series, then he will break Sachin Tendulkar’s record of being the fastest-ever cricketer to reach this milestone.
The 35-year-old currently has 26,942 runs to his credit across formats in just 591 innings. On the other hand, India’s batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar managed to get past the 27,000-run mark in 623 innings.
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