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A decade ago, when Indian cricket needed some worthy replacements for Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, quite a few names were in the contention. Among those few, two names that impressed everyone were Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Having made their international debut almost at the same time (2007 and 2008), both these players were hailed as the men who will carry the baton of India's batting legacy in the next decade or two. Fortunately, they didn't disappoint as they had a successful transition from domestic cricket to International cricket.
In spite of making his debut a year after Rohit, Kohli has become the Indian captain in all three formats while the former is still an integral part of his skipper's plans.
Without a doubt, both these batsmen are two of the most elegant batters going around at the moment. Though they have had some ups and downs in their careers, there has always been this argument among the fans regarding who the better player is.
Let us take a look at an analysis on who the better player is across all the three formats.
Tests
Rohit Sharma was supposed to make his Test debut way back in 2010 against South Africa in Ahmedabad, much before Virat Kohli was drafted to the Test squad, but an injury to him just before the toss delayed his debut by three years.
In those three years, Kohli got his test cap, got dropped, made a comeback and sealed his place in the side.
They had a contrasting start in Tests as Rohit scored two centuries in his first two matches, but hasn't added to his tally since then. Kohli, on the other hand, had a poor start to his Test career as he was dropped from the team after playing just two matches.
When the Delhite made his comeback in late 2011, he was still struggling during the 2011-12 tour of Australia and could have been easily dropped midway to accommodate Rohit, but MS Dhoni decided to give Kohli one more chance and as they say, the rest is history.
Rohit's loss was Kohli's gain as the Delhi batsman notched up his first century in Adelaide and since then, there was no turning back for him in the format.
By the time Rohit made his debut, Kohli already had four centuries and was tipped to replace Sachin after his retirement, which happened to be Rohit's debut series. After a great start to his career, the Mumbaikar toured overseas and after some not-so promising performances, he was dropped from the team, later made a comeback just to be dropped again and make yet another comeback.
It's almost four years since Rohit made his Test debut and he is yet to cement his place in the playing XI.
In the mean time, Kohli has scored 13 centuries and was appointed as the captain of the Indian Test team. To be fair, Rohit was never given a decent run with a proper role in the Test side.
He was given one in the series against New Zealand in 2016 where scored three fifties in three consecutive matches. What happened after that? Rohit got injured and was eventually made to sit out to accommodate an extra bowler.
Verdict: Virat Kohli is easily one of the most improved players in the longer formats in the last three years and is on his way to greatness. Rohit, on the other hand, is looking for an opportunity to seal his place in the playing XI.
At this point of time, Kohli is miles ahead of Rohit in this format.
ODIs
Just like Tests, Rohit Sharma had a slightly better start when compared to Virat Kohli in ODIs. Rohit was drafted into the team as a 19-year-old for the tour of England in 2007. Though he got to play a combined total of only four matches in his first four series, his major break came in the 2008 CB series against Australia and Sri Lanka where he was given a longer run.
The day Rohit scored a match-winning 66 against Australia in Sydney, Kohli's India won the under-19 World Cup in Kuala Lumpur and the Indian captain was called up to tour Sri Lanka later that year. Kohli was asked to open the innings in the series and had a decent outing before he was dropped to accommodate the regulars.
*Rohit made his debut against Ireland in 2007. But, he played just one match each in his first four series. That's why the 2008 CB series was considered as the benchmark for this table.
Though both of them had a similar average in their first series, Rohit's impact was more than that of Kohli and was he was touted as the future of Indian cricket. Then came the turning point in Kohli's career. After making a come back just before the 2009 Champions Trophy, Kohli sealed his place in the playing XI with some consistent performances.
Rohit, on the other hand, was dropped from the team owing to poor form and was in and out of the playing XI. Though he made a couple of centuries in 2010, he missed the bus for the 2011 World Cup while Kohli played an integral part in India's triumph in the tournament.
When Rohit Sharma's career looked in danger, he got a lifeline and this time, he grabbed the opportunity with both his hands. In 2013, he was asked to open the batting for the first time and since then, there was no turning back for the Mumbaikar.
He not only cemented his place in the team but also went on to become one of the best opening batsmen going around at the moment. He also became the first player to score two double hundred in ODIs and holds the highest individual score in the format.
Meanwhile, Kohli is still doing what he was doing in the pre-Rohit opening era, ie. scoring centuries for fun and winning matches for India.
In spite of rejuvenating himself at the top of the order, Rohit seems to be lagging behind his captain when it comes to this format. Virat Kohli, the master of run chases is batting like a man on a mission and if he continues the way he is batting, he can go on to become one of the greatest players to have played this format.
Without any disrespect to Rohit, who has redefined himself as a match-winner in ODIs after being made to open the innings, he is yet to reach Kohli's level in the 50-over format.
Verdict: Not only Rohit, none of the batsmen in the modern era come close to Virat Kohli in ODIs. He is by far the best player going around at the moment in this format.
Twenty20 Internationals
Rohit Sharma announced himself in the International arena by playing a match-winning knock against South Africa in the 2007 World T20 and took India to the semis. He followed it up with an underrated performance in the final and took India to a total closer to 160.
Yet again, Rohit had a better start to his career in a format when compared to Kohli. The latter had a relatively slow start to his career and was often termed as a player who can't give his best in the T20 format. He was scoring runs consistently and overtook Rohit after his first few matches, but he was not considered a T20 material while Rohit was establishing himself as India's best T20I batsman, thanks to his consistency.
Then came the 2014 World T20. While Rohit was tipped to be India's best batsman in this format, Kohli stepped up his game and went on to win the player of the tournament in which the opener played his part as well.
It didn't stop there as Kohli carried his rich vein of form and became a world beater in this format. He has stepped up his game in such a way that even Rohit, who has been consistent in T20Is looks an average player.
In 2016, Kohli scored 641 runs in just 13 T20I innings at an average of over 107 and141. With this performance, he has established himself as the best T20I going around and if he continues to bat the way he is, he can go on to become the greatest T20I batsman ever.
Verdict: Once again, Virat Kohli pips Rohit Sharma in this format in spite of the Mumbaikar being one of the most consistent batsmen in this format.
Indian Premier League
Both Rohit and Kohli started their IPL career at the same time in 2008 and just like the other formats, Rohit had a brilliant start to his IPL career when compared to Kohli.
Playing for Deccan Chargers, Rohit was one of their trump cards in the inaugural season and scored 404 runs at an average of 36.72 while Kohli managed a mere 165 runs in 13 matches at an average of 15.
Rohit has been very consistent in the IPL since the start and he has scored at least 350 runs in every season barring the tenth edition. Kohli, on the other hand, had a slow start to his IPL career as he was a bit inconsistent in the tournament over the years.
2016 saw Virat Kohli at his peak as he scored 973 in one season at a staggering average of over 81. This is the highest number of runs scored by a batsman in one season and it is highly unlikely that this record will be taken away from the RCB captain in the future.
After the first ten seasons, Kohli has managed to catch up with Rohit and even overtook the Mumbai Indians skipper in the overall runs tally. Unfortunately, for Kohli, he has never lifted the IPL trophy while Rohit led his team to victory thrice in the last ten years. Rohit is also the most decorated player in the history of IPL with four titles as a player.
Verdict: In spite of having lesser runs among the two, Rohit Sharma edges Kohli in the competition, thanks to his consistency over the years.
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