Virat Kohli and Joe Root are the only two active players who are closest to breaking master blaster Sachin Tendulkar’s two different records. While the talismanic Indian batter is closing in on Sachin’s record of 100 international centuries, having already registered 86 across formats, Root is 1,643 runs short of Tendulkar’s Test run tally of 15,921. Though Kohli has confirmed the 2027 ODI World Cup will be his last, leaving little room for him to equal or break Sachin’s century feat, Root has committed to representing England in Tests for a few years, which makes him the frontrunner of the two to get past the cricketing great.
Cricketer-turned-broadcaster Dinesh Karthik, also the batting coach at the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the IPL franchise Kohli represents, feels it would be tougher for the batting genius to break Sachin’s overall century record, but feels that Root can go past Sachin’s Test tally at some stage. His comments, however, came after Kohli notched up his 55th ODI hundred in the series opener against the West Indies.
“I really wish he (Kohli) does, but I think it is very hard,” Dinesh Karthik said of Kohli’s chances on Cricbuzz. “Good chance (on Root’s chances). They play a lot of Test cricket. He still looks quite fit. He is happily scoring runs every time he goes out to bat. So, I think it looks very possible for him,” Karthik noted.
For Kohli to equal his idol’s 100-century mark, he has just over a year and a half of bilateral ODIs and tournament fixtures before the 2027 World Cup concludes on November 21, 2027. Root, however, is lined up to play an away Test series against South Africa and two one-off Tests against Australia and Bangladesh, respectively, before the current WTC cycle ends in June 2027.
Should he remain fit, Root would likely feature in the home Ashes that begins shortly after the WTC Final on June 9, which gives him five more Tests in favourable conditions to break Sachin’s overall run tally.