GOAT Debate Is Subjective. But Virat Kohli Being the Best ‘Chaser’? Undisputed.

Cardiff. Mirpur. Birmingham. Dubai. Virat Kohli inevitably delivers in knockouts. Pressure? Pressure is for tyres.

Why Virat Kohli is the chasemaster in ODI cricket.

(Photo: X)

Cardiff. Mirpur. Birmingham. Pressure? What pressure? Pressure is for tyres.

Not that Virat Kohli was humming a personalised version of Alan Shearer’s iconic line from UEFA Euro 2024, yet, the scenario he found himself in on Tuesday, 4 March, has quite often been the canvas of his finest masterpieces. India were 30/1 in five overs, chasing 265 in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 semi-final against Australia.

Dubai’s surface, fresh for the occasion, had no ghastly ghosts. But mischief, it certainly did. The target never seemed daunting for India. When push comes to shove, the batting unit could prove to be more bulletproof than the ideas in V for Vendetta. After all, the batter at number eight, Ravindra Jadeja, has 13 ODI centuries and 2797 runs to his name.

Yet, when skipper Rohit Sharma departed in the eighth over’s penultimate delivery, giving Australian debutant Cooper Connolly his maiden ODI wicket, the win predictor leaned 60-40 in the Aussies’ favour.

What Do Algorithms Know About Psychology?

Can statistical algorithms incorporate human psychology? For, if it did, the prediction seemed justifiable.

A nation severely struggling to move on from anything and everything, be it love or hatred, found itself haunted by the echoes of 19 November 2023. Two wickets inside the first ten overs. A batting collapse. Been there, and seen it all.

Or, was it a culmination of recurring trauma? Indeed, a sizeable section of Indian fans might have subconsciously, in an anything-to-avoid-the-Aussies bid, hoped for an otherwise unwanted result in the dead rubber against New Zealand. 2023 World Test Championship final, 2015 World Cup semi-final – the list is long.

And hence, despite India’s incredible batting depth, despite Australia’s score being far from daunting, and despite the pitch being devoid of ghosts, anxiety was palpable. Murphy’s law had been internalised.

The Saving Grace, the Antidote

The only saving grace? That, India had Virat Kohli on the crease, and that, he had rescued the team ever so often from such situations. Knockouts of an ICC event, whilst chasing a target, is where he thrives. Happy hunting ground and all of that.

Steve Smith, the Australian captain, would know all about it. Some nine years prior, it was under his captaincy that the Aussies lost a T20 World Cup match where India were 94/4 after 14 overs whilst chasing 161, on what was a precarious Mohali track.

It was not the first time Kohli had pulled off a chase masterclass on the biggest of stages. In the 2014 T20 World Cup semi-final, with Rohit Sharma, yet again, dismissed early in a chase of 173, Kohli produced a match-winning 44-ball 72, staying unbeaten.

India have won eight ICC/ACC semi-final or final matches where Kohli has been a part of the team. Having batted in seven of those, he has scored 388 runs, at an average of 129.33 and a strike rate of 106.01.

The numbers validate Kohli’s presence being at an antidote to the PTSD of Indian fans. What ensued thereon was a concoction of cricketing excellence and composed craftsmanship.

Masterclass in Controlled Craftsmanship

With the required run rate being far from intimidating, Kohli scored merely 19 runs from the first 30 deliveries. The acceleration was applied when it was needed, as the next 30 yielded 39 runs, subsequently completing yet another half-century, and earning him the distinction of most 50+ scores in ICC ODI events.

Most 50+ scores in ICC ODI events

• Virat Kohli – 24

• Sachin Tendulkar – 23

• Rohit Sharma – 18

• Kumar Sangakkara – 17

• Ricky Ponting – 16

Not only that, but he is also now tied with Sachin Tendulkar on the list of most 50+ scores in ODI cricket while chasing.

Most 50+ scores in ODI cricket while chasing:

• Virat Kohli – 69

• Sachin Tendulkar – 69

• Rohit Sharma – 53

• Jacques Kallis – 50

• Chris Gayle – 46

For a change, contrary to the 2013 Champions Trophy semi-final, 2014 T20 World Cup semi-final or the 2017 Champions Trophy semi-final, as if with the sole purpose of proving he is, beyond everything, a human, Virat Kohli could not see off the chase.

A flighted Adam Zampa delivery lured him into a slog in the 43rd over, resulting in his departure when he was merely 16 shy of what would have been his 83rd century in international cricket.

Only 20 of his 84 runs came from boundaries. His approach was deliberate. As Kohli himself put it:

I wasn't feeling desperate. I was happy knocking ones around. When, as a batsman, you start taking pride in hitting those singles into the gaps, that's when you know you're playing good cricket, and you know you're in for a big partnership, settle the nerves down a little bit and head towards chasing the total down.

Virat Kohli

Gautam Gambhir, the Indian coach and Kohli’s former Delhi teammate, summed it up best:

He is a phenomenal one-day cricketer. He knows how to plan his runs, he knows how to plan whether we are batting first or chasing, he adapts to the conditions really quickly.

Gautam Gambhir

Big Deal? Yes, Big Deal

But Kohli does more than merely adapt. Rather, following the United States Marine Corps’ fundamental principles to the T, he adapts, he improves, and he overcomes.

It is this triad which has rescued India from a rut so often, as it did on Tuesday. It is this triad which has succored Kohli to accumulate 8063 runs whilst chasing in ODIs.

Why is it a big deal? To put this into perspective, over 4000 male cricketers have played ODI cricket since the format’s inception in 1971. Among them, only 33 – that is, less than 1% – have scored north of 8000 runs.

And Virat Kohli has scored north of 8000 runs – just whilst chasing.

It is this triad which has kept him atop numerous lists, including, but not restricted to: most ODI runs scored while chasing in ICC tournaments, most ODI runs coming in a winning cause while chasing in ICC tournaments, most ODI runs scored in a winning cause while chasing, most ODI centuries while chasing, and, has made him the only cricketer to have an average of 50+ among those who have scored at least 5000 runs while chasing.

It is this triad which took India to the final of the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Most runs scored in ODI cricket while chasing:

• Sachin Tendulkar – 8720 runs in 242 matches

• Virat Kohli – 8063 runs in 170 matches

• Rohit Sharma – 6115 runs in 158 matches

• Sanath Jayasuriya – 5742 runs in 219 matches

• Jacques Kallis – 5575 runs in 170 matches

Most runs scored in ODI cricket while chasing in ICC tournaments:

• Virat Kohli – 2869 runs in 63 matches

• Sachin Tendulkar – 2719 runs in 61 matches

• Ricky Ponting – 2493 runs in 67 matches

• Babar Azam – 2468 runs in 45 matches

• Shakib Al Hasan – 2398 runs in 65

Most ODI runs scored in a winning cause while chasing in ICC tournaments:

• Virat Kohli – 2457 runs in 49 matches

• Rohit Sharma – 2013 runs in 40 matches

• Ricky Ponting – 1907 runs in 53 matches

• Sachin Tendulkar – 1826 runs in 35 matches

• Richie Berrington – 1713 runs in 51 matches (including qualifiers)

Most ODI runs scored in a winning cause while chasing:

• Virat Kohli – 5913 runs in 105 matches

• Sachin Tendulkar – 5490 runs in 127 matches

• Rohit Sharma – 4476 runs in 101 matches

• Ricky Ponting – 4186 runs in 111 matches

• Jacques Kallis – 3950 runs in 110 matches

Most ODI centuries while chasing:

• Virat Kohli – 28

• Sachin Tendulkar – 17

• Rohit Sharma – 16

• Chris Gayle – 12

• Tillakaratne Dilshan – 11

Players with 50+ ODI average and 5000+ runs while chasing:

• 1. Virat Kohli

• End of list

Cardiff. Mirpur. Birmingham. And now, Dubai. Pressure? What pressure? Pressure is for tyres.