Kohli becomes 10th cricketer to make 500 international appearances

PORT OF SPAIN: Indian cricketing stalwart Virat Kohli became only the 10th cricketer to make 500 international appearances during his side’s second and final Test match against West Indies on Thursday at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port of Spain.

Kohli is the fourth Indian to join this exclusive list, with the other three being Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni.

“His (Kohli’s) numbers and his stats speak for themselves; it’s all there in the books. He is a real inspiration to so many players within this team, without a doubt, and to so many people, boys and girls back home in India,” said Indian coach Dravid said on the eve of the Test.

“I didn’t know that this was his 500th game. For me, what has been great is to see the efforts and the work that he puts in behind the scenes when no one is watching. And that’s great for a coach because a lot of young players will look to that and get inspired,” he added.

Kohli has represented India in 274 ODIs and 115 T20Is and 111 Tests, including the one against West Indies today.

Tendulkar leads the list, which is dominated by Asian batters, with 664 appearances. Sri Lankan legend Mahela Jayawardene is the only other to make more than 600 international matches. Agencies

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