Virat Kohli reached 15,000 ODI runs during the first ODI against West Indies in Thiruvananthapuram
He became only the second batter in cricket history to achieve this monumental milestone
The ecstatic crowd rose to their feet as Kohli raised both arms to acknowledge a rousing standing ovation
Virat Kohli etched his name permanently into cricket's record books on Sunday, becoming only the second batter in the history of One Day International cricket to reach 15,000 runs — and doing so faster than anyone before him.
The milestone arrived in the 1st ODI against West Indies at the Greenfield International Stadium, with India chasing West Indies' total of 295/7. In the 29th over of the chase, Kohli went after pace bowler Alzarri Joseph, pulling a short delivery firmly through mid-wicket for a boundary.
The stroke took him to 65 off 48 balls — and simultaneously brought up the 15,000-run landmark. He later moved to 66 not out off 49 deliveries, striking six fours and two sixes, as he steered India's chase alongside opening partner Shubman Gill, who was himself closing in on a century on 96 not out. The pair had forged a 121-run partnership at the time.
Kohli reached the mark in his 315th ODI innings, becoming the second player — after Sachin Tendulkar — to cross 15,000 ODI runs. Tendulkar remains the format's all-time leading scorer with 18,426 runs from 463 matches, meaning Kohli sits 3,426 runs behind the record at the moment he crossed the landmark. Kohli's tally also puts him well clear of the next name on the list, Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara (14,234 runs) — at least 766 runs ahead at the point of crossing 15,000.
This isn't the first time Kohli has rewritten the speed records for ODI milestones:
10,000 runs: Reached in his 205th innings (2018), surpassing Tendulkar's mark of 259 innings.
13,000 runs: Reached in 267 innings (2023), again bettering Tendulkar's previous benchmark of 321 innings.
15,000 runs: Reached in his 315th innings — once more the fastest to the mark, extending a pattern that has defined his career.
With the 2027 ODI World Cup on the horizon, Kohli's continued excellence — despite India fielding a side without frontline names like Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah in this series — reaffirms his central role in India's white-ball plans. Sitting alongside Tendulkar as the only two men to ever reach 15,000 ODI runs, Kohli's achievement isn't just a personal landmark; it's a marker of enduring greatness in a format increasingly dominated by younger, faster-scoring batters.
