With Virat Kohli one away from breaking Sachin Tendulkar's record of 49 ODI hundreds, we are asking fans to pick his best ODI century. We have shortlisted eight outstanding Kohli hundreds, with two of them paired in each match-up till we have a winner. The innings with more votes in each match-up moves to the next round.
Voting for this match-up has ended. The 160* vs South Africa in Cape Town moves to the semi-final round.
100* (52) vs Australia, 2nd ODI, Jaipur, 2013
"The moment Virat came to the crease," was Australia captain George Bailey's answer to the question of when the match slipped away from the touring side. In a high-scoring series, centuries from Kohli and Rohit Sharma ensured that India hauled down Australia's 360-run target with more than six overs to spare. Kohli's staggering 52-ball century, still the fastest by an India batter in ODIs, was imperious yet well crafted. He charged down the track often and muscled seven sixes in all in addition to eight fours. When the slightest opportunity to convert one into two presented itself, he took it. Kohli's fifty came off 27 balls with a flick off Xavier Doherty, and soon he was not only walking down the wicket but also dancing around it. A brutish slog over midwicket off Doherty took him to 99; the century came two balls later with a characteristic push to the off side. Kohli celebrated by blowing a kiss to the crowd.
160*(159) vs South Africa, 3rd ODI, Cape Town, 2018
A tough pitch was no hindrance to Kohli during a run in which he scored a record tally of 558 in a bilateral ODI series. He made three hundreds in six innings, with the 160* in Cape Town being the pick of them. Kohli, who successfully reviewed an lbw decision after being given out on 0, put in a masterclass even as the batters around him struggled against the pace and bounce of South Africa's bowling attack. After consolidating in the middle overs, Kohli accelerated in the final 10, taking India from 223 for 4 to 303 for 6. He made more than half of India's total and ran for 100 of his runs in the dry heat. South Africa were bundled out for 179, just 19 more runs than what Kohli made himself, showing how much of a gap had opened up in one-day cricket between Kohli and his peers during this stage of his career.