Virat Kohli's wait for 71st international ton continues

Virat Kohli will have to wait for his 71^st international hundred a little longer. In the first ODI against England, the master batsman looked all set to add to his centuries tally. He was timing the ball in sublime fashion, and it looked as if he would score his 44^th ODI hundred in the first ODI against Eoin Morgan and his men. But then, Kohli was dismissed off the first ball of the 33^rd over.

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The Indian skipper went for his favourite ‘whip shot’ through mid-wicket off the bowling of Mark Wood, but could only manage to hit the ball straight to Moeen Ali in the deep and departed for a well-made 56.

And now, Kohli has gone a colossal 486 days without an international hundred. But then, what is interesting is the fact that he has scored 10 international fifties in this period. Even though he has managed to get agonizingly close to the three-figure mark, Kohli has not been able to get the elusive ton.

Kohli is only 32 but is already considered as one of the greatest batsmen to have ever graced the international arena. The batting colossus stands third in the list of batsmen with the most centuries in international cricket and is only behind the iconic Sachin Tendulkar (100 international centuries) and Ricky Ponting (71 international centuries).

Kohli is also the only Indian batsman to have scored 7 double centuries in Test cricket. The right-hander is also the 6^th highest run-scorer in ODI cricket and has piled up 12096 runs at an average of 59.29. It remains to be seen when the master’s wait for a three-figure score would end.