Many questions were raised on India's leadership qualities and also on the current form of India's captain Virat Kohli after the 2021 T20 World Cup exit. As a matter of fact, Kohli hasn't reached a three-figure score in more than two years, across all the formats. Despite that, Virat Kohli is leading the chart for most runs and boundaries in Tests, ODIs, and T20Is.
The latest stats by India's famous 'statsman' - Mohandas Menon - reveal how Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been dominating the international batting scenario for the past five years.
Rohit Sharma leads the record for hitting most sixes in the past five years. The 'Hitman' has hit 264 6s in the last five years across all formats in international cricket. England T20I skipper Eoin Morgan comes a distant second with 154 international sixes. Thus, it won't be an exaggeration to call Rohit Sharma - the 'Sixer King'.
Number of 6s in last 5 years (as of November 24, 2021)
264 - Rohit Sharma
154 - Eoin Morgan
149 - Evin Lewis
145 - Aaron Finch
144 - Martin Guptill
On the other hand, despite much talk about Virat Kohli's form, the Indian captain is way ahead of other batsmen, even in his supposed 'bad patch' as a batsman. Kohli has hit 936 4s in the last five years in all formats, which is 138 more than the second player on the list, Joe Root. Kohli also leads the way in the number of runs scored in the last five years in Tests, ODIs and T20Is.
Most 4s In International Cricket In Last 5 Years (As of November 24, 2021)
936 - Virat Kohli
798 - Joe Root
788 - Babar Azam
770 - Rohit Sharma
698 - Jonny Bairstow
Most Runs (Average) In International Cricket In Last 5 Years (As of November 24, 2021)
9725 (59.29) - Virat Kohli
8069 (50.43) - Joe Root
7770 (51.77) - Rohit Sharma
7568 (50.11) - Babar Azam
5981 (36.69) - Jonny Bairstow
Here are the stats by Mohandas Menon:
[NOTE: Rohit Sharma and Martin Guptill's numbers have changed as both played the IND Vs NZ 3rd T20I]
What do we understand from the stats?
Long story short - form is temporary, class is permanent! Virat Kohli's name at the top of the list suggests that he may have been 'out of form', but the Indian captain has set such high standards for himself that the fans won't accept anything just average. Having said that, Kohli's record since November 23, 2019 has been ordinary. In 50 matches and 56 inns, Kohli has scored 1989 runs, averaging 40.59, with 20 scores of 50+.