The year 2017 was wonderful for the former Indian captain, Virat Kohli, as he scored 1460 Runs. This let him break the 10-years-old record of Ricky Ponting – the most runs scored in a calendar year by any captain.
Here’s the list of batsmen who topped the maximum runs for his team while playing as a captain.
Most ODI Runs by Captains in a Calendar Year
| Player | Runs | Year | Innings | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 1460 | 2017 | 26 | 76.84 |
| Ricky Ponting (AUS) | 1424 | 2007 | 24 | 79.11 |
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 1377 | 2019 | 25 | 59.86 |
| Misbah-ul-Haq (PAK) | 1373 | 2013 | 32 | 54.92 |
| Mohammad Azharuddin (IND) | 1268 | 1998 | 33 | 43.72 |
| Rohit Sharma (IND) | 1255 | 2023 | 26 | 52.29 |
| Angelo Mathews (SL) | 1244 | 2014 | 31 | 62.2 |
| Sourav Ganguly (IND) | 1223 | 2000 | 25 | 58.23 |
| Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) | 1202 | 2001 | 33 | 37.56 |
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 1202 | 2018 | 14 | 133.55 |
Key Insights
Virat Kohli managed 1460 runs at an average of 76.84 in 26 matches in 2017, surpassing the Indian record of 1268 runs by Mohammad Azharuddin in 1998.
Virat became the first Indian skipper to amass 1300 runs or more in a calendar year in ODIs. He is also the only captain to score 1000-plus runs and five or more hundreds in three consecutive years – 2017, 2018, and 2019.
Kohli has also recorded the highest average for any captain, who scored more than 1000 ODI runs within a year. He averaged 133.55 while scoring 1202 runs in 14 innings in 2018.
Six captains scored 1000-plus runs in two or more calendar years. Among them, Ricky Ponting in his peak went past the mark in four years, the most for a captain. Kohli (three), AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni, Sourav Ganguly, and Sanath Jayasuriya (all two each) are the others.
Most ODI Centuries as a Captain in a Year
Virat Kohli’s six centuries in 2017 and 2018 are also the most by any captain in a calendar year.
By 2017, he broke Sourav Ganguly’s previous record of the most ODI centuries in a year as an Indian captain. Ganguly had scored five ODI centuries in 2000 as the Indian captain. Ricky Ponting and AB de Villiers also scored five centuries as a captain within a year.
As a batsman, Virat’s record of six tons is three short of Sachin’s nine centuries in the year 1998. Ganguly and Warner scored seven centuries each in 2000 and 2016, respectively.
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