World Cup 2019: Virat Kohli beats Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara to become the fastest to reach 20,000 international runs

What's the story?

Virat Kohli etched his name into the record books once again as he became the fastest to reach 20,000 runs in international cricket en route his 72-run knock against the West Indies. Kohli eclipsed batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar and Caribbean legend Brian Lara, who previously held the record jointly in 453 innings.

In case you didn't know

Virat has redefined modern day batting with unparalleled levels of excellence and consistency, setting the benchmark for other batsmen. His mind boggling ability to read the situation, constant rotation of strike, giving respect to the good bowlers and punishing the bad ones with boundaries are the qualities that make him the best batsman in the world at the moment.

The Indian captain has been on a record breaking spree, tumbling a host of milestones in the recent years. He was on the verge of breaking another big international record prior to the game, needing just 37 runs for the same.

The heart of the matter

The talismanic batsman surpassed the two batsmen by a commendable margin, something which has been a feature of all his achievements. Kohli edged past the Tendulkar and Lara when he scored his 37th run against West Indies in India's sixth World Cup game at Old Trafford in Manchester. He completed the landmark in just 417 innings, surpassing the two legends by 36 innings.

The free-scoring batsman has amassed 6613 runs in 77 innings in Tests, a whopping 11,159 runs in 224 ODI innings, and has 2263 runs under his belt in 62 T20I innings.

Virat surpassed yet another record of Sachin

What's next?

The Indian skipper has been in terrific touch in the World Cup, scoring his fourth consecutive half-century in the tournament. His sublime form was evident in the authority that he exercised over the Caribbean bowlers, holding one end strongly in the face of adversity. After becoming the fastest to score 11,000 ODI runs earlier in the tournament against Pakistan, this is the second milestone edged by India's run machine in this event, and his good form augurs well for India's chances in the World Cup.

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