Virat Kohli, an experienced batsman, outscored Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka to surpass him as the leading scorer in ICC Men’s T20 World Cup history.
Since Jayawardene, a right-handed batter, topped the list in 2014 with a total of 1016 runs, he had held the record for almost eight years.
But on Wednesday, during his team’s fourth Super 12s match against Bangladesh, Kohli shattered the record. The milestone was reached by the right-handed batter, who had a remarkable batting average of 80 and a respectable strike rate of 130.
The run that elevated Kohli above Jayawardene came in the seventh over of India’s innings against Bangladesh when he flicked Taskin Ahmed at mid-wicket for a single.
While Jayawardene required 31 innings to set the record, Kohli only needed 23 to become the tournament’s leading run-scorer. Kohli also has 12 half-centuries to his credit.
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However, the Sri Lankan hitter faced 754 fewer balls than Kohli did (773).
With his team hitting 119/3 in 14 overs, Kohli remains undefeated at 31 off 27 deliveries.
Additionally, he recently emerged from a prolonged dip in his batting to be in outstanding form during this T20 World Cup, leading India to victory over Pakistan with an undefeated 82 and adding another fifty against the Netherlands in the following match.
In a long and illustrious career, Kohli’s innings against Pakistan was one of his best.
When India was 31-4 and chasing 160, Kohli led the side to victory on the final ball of a thrilling final over from which 18 runs were required.
