Sunil Gavaskar's Bold Take On Virat Kohli's Hunt For 100 Tons: "Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer Were Spared"

Legendary India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has touched on an interesting topic amid India's ongoing series against New Zealand. In the first ODI, Virat Kohli blazed 74 off 51 to spearhead India to victory in a low-scoring contest. However, Gavaskar pointed out that had Kohli batted on, skipper Shubman Gill and vice-captain Shreyas Iyer might've faced the dilemma of whether to go for the win or bat slowly enough to allow Kohli to get to his hundred - even more so given Kohli is not too far away from the milestone of 100 international centuries.

In his latest column on Mid-day, Gavaskar claimed that while victory should always be the priority, Kohli reaching the milestone would be a moment of glory not only for the player, but also for all Indian cricket fans.

"Indians have always been fond of records and so there's always a debate about the rights and wrongs of going for it. One thing for sure that 99% of those who say they don't play for records are actually incapable talent and temperament wise of setting any and so it's easy for them to say so," Gavaskar wrote.

"There is not a single Indian cricket fan who does not want Kohli to get to 100 international centuries. We are all cheering for him to get there and so, if there's an occasion where some other teammate sacrifices his runs to allow him the chance to get there, the glory will not be just Kohli's but for all Indian cricket fans too," he added.

In a rain-affected match, Kohli departed when India were at 124/3, with not much of the target left to chase down.

Gavaskar stated that Kohli getting out for 74 spared Gill or Shreyas the dilemma over the century, or any possible backlash from fans on social media.

"Kohli got out in the 70s. Gill and Iyer were thus spared any blowback if the winning runs had been hit with Kohli unbeaten in the 90s. Yes, it's a team game, but it's also good for the team if one of its members, especially a star player, gets to a personal milestone without affecting the team's chances of winning," Gavaskar pointed out.

Kohli, who is active in ODIs only, currently boasts 86 international centuries. With many expecting him to possibly call it quits after the 2027 World Cup, the 38-year-old doesn't have much time to get to the milestone of 100 international hundreds, something that only Sachin Tendulkar has done till date.

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