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Star India Virat Kohli is just one big knock away from achieving a new height among Indian batters as they take on New Zealand in the second ODI at Rajkot on Wednesday.
The 37-year-old is in imperious touch with the bat, having struck five successive fifty-plus scores in ODI cricket so far, keeping the streak which started during the final ODI against Australia at Sydney alive during the first NZ ODI at Vadodara, striking a brilliant 93 in 91 balls, with eight fours and a six. Striking at more than run-a-ball, Virat was absolutely chanceless in his approach. Currently, it is Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane, who are level with the Indian icon with five successive ODI fifty-plus scores. Another half-century would make him the first Indian batter with six successive fifty-plus ODI scores. Globally, it is Pakistan legend Javed Miandad (nine successive fifty-plus scores), Imam-ul-Haq (seven successive fifty-plus scores), who occupy the top two spots in terms of most fifty-plus scores in ODIs successively. Batters like Kane Williamson, Shai Hope, Babar Azam, Paul Stirling, Ross Taylor and Chris Gayle are among batters with six successive fifty-plus scores in ODIs. In his last five ODIs, Virat has scored 469 runs at an average of 156.33, with two centuries and three fifties to his name. If his two appearances in the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) for Delhi are included, in which he has scored 131 and 77 respectively, Virat has seven-successive fifty-plus scores in List-A cricket. Virat's bat has bled 677 runs in these seven innings at an average of 135.4, with three centuries and four fifties. Squads: India Squad: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill(c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul(w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Ayush Badoni, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel New Zealand Squad: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay(w), Michael Bracewell(c), Zakary Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok, Jayden Lennox, Nick Kelly, Josh Clarkson, Michael Rae. (ANI)
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