IPL 2023: The Indian Premier League is one of the best sports leagues in the world. It is one of the first leagues of its own. And it has one of the largest fan bases for the game in the world. And one of the most followed cricketers across the globe is a former Indian skipper. Arguably, Virat Kohli is a once-in-a-lifetime player and one of the best in the last decade.
His stats are unwatchable on the international circuit and he is in a different league when it comes to the IPL. However, he is going through a lean patch right now. But it is just a matter of one good inning. So in this article, we will cover three of his incredible records in the cash-rich league, which are almost impossible to break for any player.
IPL 2023: Three Incredible Records Held by Virat Kohli in the IPL
1. Most Centuries in one season of the IPL
Virat Kohli is the only player in the history of the IPL to have played for only one franchise since the inception of the IPL. And he has performed consistently over the years for them. He has seen many ups and downs throughout his IPL career. But 2016 was the best season a player could ever dream of. Scoring a century in T20 cricket is not a cup of tea for everyone. However, Virat was scoring consistently but hadn’t had a century till that season.
But in 2016, the champion batsman scored four centuries in one season and became the only batter to do so. The right-hander was at his peak in the 2016 season and scored a record-breaking four centuries in one season. The former RCB skipper scored centuries against Chennai Super Kings, Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) and two against Gujarat Lions. And with the IPL 2023 about to start, we can expect more from him.
2. Most Runs as a Captain in the History of IPL
Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni are the two most successful captains in the history of the IPL. Both of them have won five and four IPL titles each. And that is the bad luck for the RCB in this league. They have played three finals in the IPL but have not won a single one of them. They lost to the Deccan Chargers in 2009, to the Chennai Super Kings in 2011 and to Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016. However, Virat has led RCB for eight seasons from 2013 to 2020 but has never won the title.
But if we talk about his individual performance as captain, he is the run-machine in the lucrative league. Virat has played a total of 140 games as a captain. He has scored the most runs as an IPL captain, which is still a record. The right-hander had 4881 runs at an average of 42.07, with five centuries and 35 half-centuries.
3. Most Runs in one Single Season
Well, there are very few batting records that Virat doesn’t have. He always sets a bar, whether it is international cricket or in the Indian league. But this record is almost impossible for any cricketer to break, and that is scoring the most runs in one season of the IPL, because a player can only play a maximum of 17 games in one season. And you need to perform out of your skin to achieve that.
Virat was in the form of his life during 2016-2017 and that’s what he showed in the 2016 season. The former Indian skipper played 16 matches in that season and scored eleven 50+ scores in 16 innings. And with that, he scored 973 runs, including four centuries and seven half-centuries, at an average of 81.08 and a strike rate of 152.03. The next best for any player is David Warner (848 runs) in the same season.