India vs Sri Lanka 3rd Test: Another milestone beckons Virat Kohli, captain set to join greats
Virat Kohli is set to achieve another milestone in the longer version of the game when India face Sri Lanka in the third Test at Delhi's Feroz Shah Kotla stadium from Saturday (December 2).
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The Indian captain can make it a special homecoming. The hosts already lead the three-match series 1-0 and it can be a double delight if Kohli achieves a personal landmark and also seal the rubber with a win or a draw.
In recent times, Kohli has made it a habit to obliterate records in all formats of the game. During the second Test in Nagpur, which India won, Kohli registered his fifth double century to break records.
Now, Kohli is on the threshold of another milestone. He needs 25 runs to complete 5,000 Test runs. He has so far featured in 62 Tests and has tallied 4,975 runs with 19 centuries. He averages 51.82.
When Kohli crosses the 5,000-Test run mark, he will become the 11th Indian in the elite club, which is headed by Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs). Tendulkar is also the leading run scorer in Test history. He holds the record in ODIs too.
The 29-year-old Kohli made his Test debut against West Indies in 2011 and since then he has been one of India's best batsmen in the format. He is currently fifth in the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Rankings for Test batsmen.
In ODIs, Kohli has accumulated 9,030 runs at an average of 55.74 with 32 centuries. Overall, he has 51 tons in international cricket.
Indian batsmen with 5,000 plus runs in Test cricket
Sachin Tendulkar - 15,921 (200 Tests)
Rahul Dravid - 13,288 (164)
Sunil Gavaskar - 10,122 (125)
VVS Laxman - 8,781 (134)
Virender Sehwag - 8,586 (104)
Sourav Ganguly - 7,212 (113)
Dilip Vengsarkar - 6,868 (116)
Mohammad Azharuddin - 6,215 (99)
GR Viswanath - 6,080 (91)
Kapil Dev - 5,248 (131)