Former Indian cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu has rated Virat Kohli as the best Indian batsman, calling him better than cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar and MS Dhoni. Kohli is breaking many batting records one after the other. He recently completed the fastest 13,000 ODI runs and also became the first player to score 50 centuries in this format.

The 35-year-old Kohli had also broken Sachin Tendulkar’s record of most runs in a single edition of the ODI World Cup by scoring 765 runs in the tournament last year. Speaking to India Today ahead of IPL 2024, Sidhu said that the way Kohli has adapted to all three formats makes him the best Indian batsman so far.

Navjot Singh Sidhu spoke big in praise of Virat Kohli

Sidhu said that, I have rated him the best Indian batsman till date. There was a time when I used to put on my transistor and listen to Sunil Gavaskar batting against West Indies, that was the 70s. The great West Indies fast bowler, bunking school and just going out for a period and hearing how he was batting without a helmet, that was his era.

His dominance lasted for about 15-20 years. Then Tendulkar came, another era came. Then came Dhoni and then came Virat. If you look at these four, I would consider them the best because they have adapted to all three formats.”

The former cricketer further said, “If you look at these four, he will be the fittest. Tendulkar had to face many problems in the last phase of his career. Dhoni, he was fit, but Virat is super fit. It keeps him in good shape. It takes him to a level, a few notches above, that others have not been able to achieve. The longevity factor, gives it a plus point. The adaptability factor is the icing on the cake.”