"I am slightly surprised why he has bid goodbye so early" - Aakash Chopra on whether Virat Kohli can break Sachin Tendulkar's record

Former India player Aakash Chopra has opined that Virat Kohli is unlikely to break Sachin Tendulkar's record of 100 international centuries. While expressing surprise about Kohli's decision to retire from Tests, he wasn't optimistic about the modern batting great's chances of reaching the milestone while playing ODIs only.

India will lock horns with England in a five-match Test series, with the first game starting in Leeds on Friday, June 20. With Kohli and Rohit Sharma having retired from Tests, the visitors' 18-member squad has a relatively inexperienced batting lineup.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener was asked whether Kohli can break Tendulkar's record of 100 international centuries.

"This job is extremely difficult when you have bid goodbye to two formats. I am slightly surprised why he has bid goodbye so early because he is 36 years old and is extremely fit. It's not that his bat is not striking the ball at all," he responded (5:30).

Chopra reckoned that Kohli will have to revoke his Test retirement call if he harbors hopes of reaching the 100-century mark.

"However, if he has decided that he doesn't want to play two formats, ODIs aren't played that much. So, unfortunately, I don't think Virat Kohli will be able to do it, unless he revokes his Test retirement. It won't be a bad thing if he wishes to return. However, at this point in time, if all things remain the same, he might not be able to reach Sachin Tendulkar's record," he observed.

Virat Kohli hadn't enjoyed great success in Test cricket lately. He scored only three centuries since the beginning of 2020, including the unbeaten 100-run knock in India's second innings of the first Test of BGT 2024-25 in Perth last year.

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Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar's records across formats

Virat Kohli has scored more ODI centuries than Sachin Tendulkar. [P/C: Getty]

Virat Kohli has aggregated 27599 runs at an average of 52.27 in 617 innings across the three formats. He has scored 82 international centuries - 30 in Tests, 51 in ODIs, and one in T20Is.

Sachin Tendulkar amassed 34357 runs at an average of 48.52 in 782 international innings. While he managed only 10 runs in the solitary T20I he played, he struck 51 centuries in Tests and 49 in ODIs.

Kohli's 51 ODI centuries have come in 290 innings. He will need 103 innings to reach the 100-century mark if he continues to score hundreds at the same rate in the 50-over format.

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