Younis went on to emphasise Kohli’s sheer fitness level. He was particularly sympathetic towards KL Rahul, who had to keep pace with Kohli’s relentless running between the wickets, especially since Rahul was making a return from an injury layoff.

“I felt sorry for KL Rahul because he was coming out of injury and he had to run with this man. He runs like a crazy man. He wants to be the best in anything he does, batting, fielding or running between the wickets. And what he loves himself is his work on fitness,” Waqar told Star Sports.

Younis commended Rahul for managing to hold his own in what could have been a physically draining encounter. The innings validated Rahul’s fitness level, who put up a solid 111 from 106 balls.

The match in Colombo featured Kohli resuming his batting at eight runs and playing a supporting role to Rahul initially. Kohli’s dedication and on-field choices were instrumental in guiding India to a formidable total of 356 for 2 in 50 overs.

The talk of the town, however, remains Kohli’s imminent chance at history. With 47 ODI hundreds, he’s just a whisker away from equalling Tendulkar’s record of 49. While Younis believes Kohli is not just looking to match but to exceed all expectations, the numbers already speak volumes. Kohli has become the fastest batter to reach 13,000 ODI runs, breaking yet another record held by Tendulkar.

“The difference between him and other players, even Sachin Tendulkar. Sachin Tendulkar, when he finished, had 49 hundreds. I can promise you Virat is a long way from finishing his career or being done with cricket. He will end up with a lot more than anybody can think,” the legendary fast bowler told Star Sports.

Updated: 12 Sep 2023, 11:53 AM IST