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Updated February 15th, 2018 at 03:29 IST

Settling the greatest debate ever – Sachin Vs Kohli – Who is a step ahead?

Popularly deemed as the heir to India’s greatest batsman ever, Sachin Tendulkar, current captain Virat Kohli has been killing records with his consistency and unparalleled hunger to score runs.

Reported by: Annanya Johari
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Popularly deemed as the heir to India’s greatest batsman ever, Sachin Tendulkar, current captain Virat Kohli has been killing records with his consistency and unparalleled hunger to score runs. At the rate the 29-year-old is advancing down the warpath across all formats, he looks prime to surpass several records held by the God of Cricket.

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However, the Delhiite finds it embarrassing to be compared to a legend of the game, who he grew up admiring.

“Honestly I feel embarrassed. It is unfair and Sachin can't be compared with anyone. Comparisons are not valid from my end. I have looked up to him but want to be myself and definitely draw inspiration from him. He is two levels above any player. Sachin was born with talent and I had to work for it,” Kohli had said in one of his interviews.

As aforementioned by Kohli himself, his induction into the Test team was completely different from that of Tendulkar’s. The young cricket took nearly three years after his ODI debut in 2008 to get his Test cap, whereas his idol, Sachin, was a child prodigy, who cemented his place in the national Test team at the age of 16. The Mumbaikar was given his Test cap against Pakistan in Pakistan and became the youngest cricketer to represent India.

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Their international careers began in completely different fashions, but if one compares Sachin’s records with Kohli’s after their first 63 Tests and 202 ODIs, it can be seen that while both are a benchmark of ODI excellence, Tendulkar’s contemporary is slowly overtaking his feats that came in colored clothing.

But before we draw a statistical comparison of the two greats, it is pertinent to note that the standard of fast and spin bowling faced by Tendulkar was much fiercer than what we are seeing in the Kohli era.

The records that Sachin created so briskly came against quality bowlers like Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Waqar Younis, Wasim Akram, Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Muttiah Muralitharan and several others. And while global cricket boasts of talented bowlers even today, they remain unmatched to the unplayable bowlers of yesteryears. Besides, it is also important to state that during the Tendulkar era, some of the modern features of the game, like three powerplays or the review system, were absent. Keeping these in mind, let’s juxtapose Virat’s stats with those of Tendulkar’s after their first 63 Tests and 202 ODIs respectively.

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Test Cricket

In his first 63 Tests, Tendulkar scored 4753 runs at an average of 54.63, including 19 centuries. Kohli, on the other hand, has 5268 runs from as many matches, at an average of 53.75, including 20 centuries and six double centuries!

It can be noted that Tendulkar took 103 innings to reach his 5000 Test runs, while Kohli took 106 innings.

ODI Cricket

In his first 202 ODIs, Tendulkar scored 7454 runs with an average of 42.11 and strike rate of 85.93, including 19 centuries. Kohli, on the other hand, has 9030 runs from as many matches, at an average of 55.74 and strike rate of 91.73, including 32 centuries!

Records Broken

When Kohli scored his 28th ODI century against West Indies in Kingston in July 2017, he went past Tendulkar's record for most ODI centuries while chasing. While the Master Blaster took 232 innings to score 17 tons while chasing, Kohli has 18 tons in the same from just 102 innings. In the history of ODI cricket, only two players, Kohli and Tendulkar, have managed to score more than 15 centuries while chasing.

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Tendulkar scored six double hundreds in Tests (none before his first 63 Tests, though), a record which was equalled by Kohli in the recent Test match played against Sri Lanka in Delhi. Virender Sehwag has also scored six double hundreds in white flannels.

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Against Sri Lanka in July this year, Kohli broke Tendulkar's record as the fastest India Test skipper to reach 1000 runs away from home. Tendulkar got there in 19 innings.

During the India-New Zealand ODI series in October this year, Kohli reached 889 ICC points, which is the best ever by an India batsman, surpassing Tendulkar’s tally of 887 in the year 1997.

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In the recently-concluded Test series against Sri Lanka, Kohli became the fastest Indian in 50 international centuries. He took 348 innings to achieve this feat, while Sachin got there in 378.

"We never thought that there would be another (Sachin) Tendulkar. But (Virat) Kohli has changed this mindset. I think Kohli can surpass Tendulkar's records," former India opener Virender Sehwag had recently told the media.

The comparisons between the two batting legends have never ceased to wane. Even though pitches are now more batting-friendly and contemporary bowlers have not met the standards set by their predecessors, Kohli's exceptional batting in ODIs appears astounding by any stretch of the imagination.

The one blemish on Kohli’s staggering records, however, is his inability to perform in the big games of a multilateral event. India's Champions Trophy defeat in the finals further exposed this, with Kohli being dismissed on 5 runs by Mohammed Amir.

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14 of his 184 ODI matches have been eliminator games (quarter-final, semi-final or final of a multi-team tournament), in which he has managed only 345 runs at 31.36, with two fifties.

Once he improves his batting in big matches, Kohli can well become the best ever batsman in the 50-over format. As far as the Sachin Vs Kohli debate goes, the pupil can overhaul of all his masters’ records in the coming years, if only he continues his form and retains his supreme fitness level. Tendulkar finished his long career with unbelievable 18426 runs in the 50-over format and 15921 runs margin in Test format and only consistency over the next few years can get Kohli there.

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Published December 29th, 2017 at 16:58 IST

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