Former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has picked his greatest ODI batter of all time as he snubbed India batting maestros Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli and chose West Indies great Vivian Richards. Tendulkar is often regarded as the greatest batter of all time by many as his numbers in ODIs and Test are earth-shattering. He scored 100 international centuries during his illustrious career and at the moment Kohli looks like the only player who has a chance to emulate the feat. However, the 34-year-old still needs 26 centuries to match Tendulkar’s tally.
Kohli has been the most consistent performer in ODI with the bat since his debut as he has scored 12,773 runs at an average of 57.79 and is in the top 5 of all-time run-scorers in the format. He is four centuries short to surpass Tendulkar’s tally of most ODI centuries.
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Manjrekar feels that Kohli is undoubtedly the best ODI batter in the last 20 years but there is no match for Viv Richards when it comes to the all-time list.
“When you look at the modern era, in the last 20 years or so, Virat Kohli is right up there. Tendulkar also one of the time all-time greats. Virat Kohli, in my book just fits in as a pure one-day player. MS Dhoni is another player that comes to my mind,” Manjrekar told Star Sports.
“But, all-time one-day batter, there is nobody who can get close to Sir Vivian Richards. Now this might seem a little old-fashioned,” he added.
Manjrekar emphasised on Richards’s records during his playing days and said that difference between him and the second-best of his era was very big.
“Viv Richards played from 70s to 90s in a time when all top-class batters, people like Gordon Greenidge averaged about 30 and strike rate in the 60s. Viv Richards, from 70s to 90s, including a World Cup final hundred, averaged 47 and a strike rate of 90. The second-best in his era was second-best by a long way.”
“And that’s how you compare all-time greats, that’s the best way to do it. But, in the modern era, when it comes to Virat Kohli, certainly right up there,” he said.
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During the discussion, a poll was also live on Television comparing Kohli and Tendulkar in the ODIs where the 34-year-old was leading the race.
Manjrekar said that the polls usually favour the players who are playing in that era only as he also pointed to the match-winning performances of Richards.
“Fans who are watching are mostly watching today’s cricket. When you look at polls in white-ball cricket, you will have most players who have played recently. One-dayers…Viv Richards, have the time and take a look at his numbers and compare with the current lot and also with the lot that he played with. When you talk about match-winning innings, there were plenty.
“Virat Kohli, in the modern era, right up there. All time, absolutely no doubt in my mind about Sir Viv,” he added.
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