He may have been dismissed for a 24-ball 33, but Virat Kohli scaled yet another peak in his unparalleled Indian Premier League career on Wednesday (May 22, 2024). The Royal Challengers Bengaluru legend breached the 8,000-run mark during the IPL 2024 Eliminator against Rajasthan Royals at the Narendra Modi Stadium. (Match Blog | Full IPL Coverage)
With that, Kohli again went where nobody else has in the history of the high-profile league. The enormity of his achievement can be gauged from the fact that his nearest competitor, when it comes to overall runs scored in the IPL, is Shikhar Dhawan with 6,769 runs. A gulf of over 1,200 runs separates the two and underlines Kohli's utter dominance in the tournament.
Amid recurring questions over his strike rate, Kohli has steadfastly been at the centre of RCB's incredible turnaround this season. The Indian cricket lynchpin and his teammates catapulted the side from the bottom of the points table to the play-offs, on the back of six consecutive victories in their last six league games. Regardless of the outcome in the Eliminator against RR, the Bengaluru franchise's IPL 2024 campaign will be remembered for years to come.
In the shadow of Kohli's 8,000-run milestone, let us take a look at his top five knocks over the course of a 17-season-long (and counting) IPL career.
113 Not Out (72 Balls) Against Rajasthan Royals, 2024
Kohli's most recent IPL ton, his eighth overall (another record), came against the same opponents who RCB are up against in the Eliminator - Rajasthan Royals. Though Jos Buttler ended up overshadowing Kohli with a match-winning century (100 not out off 58), the latter showed why he is still the most prized scalp, 16 years on.
Opening the innings, the stylish right-hander remained unbeaten and smashed four sixes and 12 fours en route a glittering hundred, only for the RCB bowlers to fail to defend the 184-run target later.
113 (50 Balls) Against Kings XI Punjab, 2016
The year 2016 was Kohli's most prosperous in the cash-rich league. He struck four hundreds that season, including his fastest-ever in the tournament - against Kings XI Punjab (now known as Punjab Kings). The 47-ball ton came just two days after Kohli had suffered a split webbing on his left hand, and led to a thumping 82-run win (Duckworth/Lewis method) for the Challengers.
109 (55 Bals) Against Gujarat Lions, 2016
Combining with his favourite accomplice AB de Villiers, Kohli smashed a century in double quick time to rattle Gujarat Lions. While Kohli eventually departed after scoring 109, de Villiers stayed undefeated and clattered 129 runs off just 52 balls. This was Kohli's third hundred of the 2016 edition and propelled RCB to a mammoth 248-run total and later, a 144-run victory.
108 Not Out (58 Balls) Against Rising Pune Supergiants, 2016
While the aforementioned 2016 knocks came while batting first, the one against the (now defunct) Rising Pune Supergiants was struck in pursuit of a 192-run target. Renowned across the world as a chaser extraordinaire in limited-overs cricket, Kohli and RCB waltzed to the target with seven wickets and three balls to spare. Staying at the crease till the very end made it all the more sweet for the consummate team man.
101 Not Out (61 Balls) Against Gujarat Titans, 2023
Like his eighth IPL ton, Kohli's seventh 100-plus innings in the league was also upstaged by a rival batter. Shubman Gill cracked an unbeaten 104 to help Gujarat Titans chase down the Challengers' 198-run target and also knock them out of the play-offs race.
The fact that it came in a losing cause and was followed by heartbreak did not take the sheen off Kohli's innings, however. The hundred was the batting titan's second one in as many matches and showcased his full array of strokes in all their glory, in a crunch match to boot.
