Virat Kohli Breaks Tendulkar’s Record with 52nd ODI Hundred, Shows the ‘Run Machine’ Still Roars

Udaipur, Dec 01, 2025: Virat Kohli added another chapter to his remarkable career by scoring his 52nd ODI century in Ranchi. With a fluent hundred off 102 balls, he once again showed that his skill and consistency remain unchanged. Kohli went on to score 135, and in the process, he overtook a major record held by Sachin Tendulkar.

Sachin Tendulkar has 100 international centuries to his name, with 51 of them coming in Test cricket. Until now, the Master Blaster held the record for the most centuries in a single format. Virat Kohli has now surpassed that milestone. The ‘King’ reached his hundred in 102 balls with a boundary off Marco Jansen. His innings featured 5 sixes and 7 fours.

This was Kohli’s first century in 280 days, his previous hundred having come in the Champions Trophy earlier this year. With this knock, he now has 83 international centuries, placing him 17 behind Sachin Tendulkar, who remains at the top of the list.

Most Sixes at No. 3 in International Cricket

The record-breaking feats did not stop there. Virat Kohli also surpassed Australian legend Ricky Ponting. In the first ODI in Ranchi, Kohli smashed 135 off 120 balls, including seven sixes. With this knock, he broke Ricky Ponting’s long-standing record for the most international sixes while batting at No. 3. Kohli now leads the list with 223 sixes, ahead of Ponting (217). After them are Kumar Sangakkara, Kane Williamson and Jacques Kallis. Kohli claimed the record with a straight six off Lungi Ngidi against South Africa.

Kohli had not scored a century in Sydney during the Australia series, but he showed that his hunger for runs remains undiminished. After India’s Test series loss to South Africa, his century in Ranchi injected confidence into a team that was psychologically down. Ranchi has always been a special venue for him, and he proved it once again, scoring three centuries in Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s city.

Rohit Sharma and Kohli returned to India after 291 days. Even after reaching his century, Kohli continued to maintain a brisk scoring rate. Ultimately, in his pursuit of quick runs, he was caught by Lungi Ngidi, bringing an end to a majestic innings.