Virat Kohli broke the tie with Mohammad Azharuddin and is now the Indian player with most catches in ODI cricket. The 36-year-old reached 158 catches in 50-over matches in his 299th ODI match, playing against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy on Sunday.
Kohli reached the milestone in the 47th over of the Pakistan innings, who had decided to bat after winning the toss in Dubai. With Naseem Shah on strike, Kuldeep Yadav forced him to play an uppish drive which went flying to Kohli at long-on who slid forward and completed the catch with ease.
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Virat then ticked his tally along further with the catch of Khushdil Shah, the last wicket to fall for Pakistan, who finished on 241 runs. Shah’s slog sweep went towards deep mid-wicket where Kohli was a safe pair of hands.
Azharuddin had taken 334 matches for his 156 catches in ODI cricket. Among the current players, Rohit Sharma is next up with only 96 catches in 270 matches.
Kohli is third in the list of most catches as a fielder in ODIs. Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene holds the record for most catches in the 50-over format with 218 of them. Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has the second-most with 160 wickets. Kohli, thus, has moved within two of the ex-Aussie batter.
Most catches by a fielder for India in ODIs
- Virat Kohli – 158 catches
- Mohammad Azharuddin – 156 catches
- Sachin Tendulkar – 140 catches
- Rahul Dravid – 124 catches
- Suresh Raina – 102 catches
Most catches by a fielder in ODIs
- Mahela Jayawardene – 218 catches
- Ricky Ponting – 160 catches
- Virat Kohli – 158 catches
- Mohammad Azharuddin – 156 catches
- Ross Taylor – 142 catches
