Shoaib Akhtar agrees that Virat Kohli is modern-day Bradman

Sunil Gavaskar also expects him to break several ODI and Test records.

Published - 02 Nov 2018, 20:59 IST | Updated - 02 Nov 2018, 20:59 IST

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Indian captain Virat Kohli is the deal right now. He’s everywhere, leading the team, scoring runs, breaking records one after the other and it all seems to be so easy for him. No wonder people who’ve already been calling him modern-day maestro and all sorts of names are now even equating him as a modern-day Bradman. And Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar seems to agree with these views.

Kohli recently entered the 10,000 club in ODIs and while doing that broke the record held by Sachin Tendulkar. In the five-match ODI series against Windies, he ended up with 453 runs which is an India record as well. With 38 ODI hundreds, the 29-year-old looks well set to eclipse Tendulkar in the near future. The fact that he’s scored runs with unbelievable consistency across formats prompts many to predict that by the time he ends his career will be way ahead of everyone else.

Gavaskar’s expectation

Sunil Gavaskar recently talking on AajTak said that ‘Virat can play for 10 more years and break most Test and ODI records,’

Sunil Gavaskar on @aajtak – Virat can play for 10 more years and break most Test and ODI records @imVkohli
— Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) November 2, 2018

Shoaib got into the conversation with Vikrant Gupta of the India Today group and added his perspective to it. The former Pakistan cricketer has no doubt that if Kohli can play for another decade he will break all the records, but for that to happen he needs to stay fit.

“No doubt about that if virat stays fit for this long then he break all the records ..” Akhtar replied.

No doubt about that if virat stays fit for this long then he break all the records ..
— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) November 2, 2018

Gupta though said it isn’t fair to compare cross-era but thinks of Virat as the modern-day version of the great Donald Bradman. “Yes @shoaib100mph bhai. Shouldn’t compare eras but he’s the modern-day Bradman,” he wrote.

Yes @shoaib100mph bhai. Shouldn’t compare eras but he’s the modern-day Bradman https://t.co/qjUaa9JniY
— Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) November 2, 2018

Akhtar admitted that this is something he doesn’t doubt and there’s, in fact, no scope to even question it. “Of course he is no question about it..”

Of course he is no question about it..
— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) November 2, 2018

The Indian captain has to date played 73 Tests, 216 ODIs and 62 T20I matches. During that, he has piled on 6331, 10232 and 2102 runs in respective formats. Kohli also has a total of 62 international hundreds to his name already and is the only one who could get in sight of Tendulkar’s 100 centuries record at least in the current era.