Indian cricket team star batter Virat Kohli added another record to his already illustrious career as he became the fastest player to reach 27000 international runs during Day 4 of the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur on Monday. Kohli shattered legendary India batter Sachin Tendulkar’s record (623 innings) as he was able to achieve the feat in just 594 innings. As a result, Kohli became the only cricketer ever to finish 27000 international runs in under 600 innings. The other players who have achieved this feat are former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting and Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara.
Fastest to 27000 international runs
594 innings – Virat Kohli
623 innings – Sachin Tendulkar
648 innings – Kumar Sangakkara
650 innings – Ricky Ponting
Former England captain Michael Vaughan feels that India’s quickfire first innings against Bangladesh in the second Test was a reflection of the England’s “Bazball” approach.
Indian batters played attacking cricket in the first essay as openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and captain Rohit Sharma set the tone of India’s quickfire response at Green Park Stadium in Kanpur after bundling out Bangladesh for 233 in the second session.
Taking to X, Vaughan wrote, “I see India are playing Bazball” as he compared India’s onslaught to England’s Bazball approach.
‘Bazball’, a term used for England’s attacking style of cricket, which became popular when Brendon McCullum took over as red-ball coach in 2022.
In 34.4 overs, India posted a total of 285/9 and declared their innings with a lead of 52 runs in the final session of Day 4. India’s outburst was led by Jaiswal, who smashed a 31-ball half-century, along with Rohit’s 11-ball 23 laced with three sixes and a four. Jaiswal played a knock of 72 off 51 balls including 12 fours and two maximums as India completed their fastest team 50 and 100 in 18 and 61 balls, respectively.
Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, India’s scoring rate didn’t drop as home batters carried forward the momentum till losing the final wicket. Shubman Gill (39), Virat Kohli (47) and KL Rahul followed the suit and hammered at blistering strike rate.
India’s hunger for scoring at a faster pace shows their intent to get a result in the much after two days of the game were washed out due to rain and a wet outfield.
Currently, India are leading the World Test Championship (WTC) table and the 2-0 series win against Bangladesh will further bolster their bid for the third consecutive final.
However, if the Kanpur Test ends in a draw, India would have an upskill task of winning five Tests from the remaining eight matches in the current WTC cycle.
After the Bangladesh series, India are scheduled to host New Zealand for a three-Test series in October before leaving for Australia for the five-Test tour.
(With IANS inputs)
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