Virat Kohli beats Sachin Tendulkar as quickest to 19000 international runs | Photo Credit: BCCL

Indian skipper Virat Kohli failed to kickstart 2019 on an impressive note as he was dismissed by Josh Hazlewood for 23 on Day 1 of the 4th Test in Sydney against Australia. Before seeing his innings come to an end, however, Kohli bagged another major record to his name as he became the fastest to reach 19000 international runs, surpassing his idol Sachin Tendulkar in the list to claim the summit position. The Indian captain broke several records in 2018 and has started off the new year with another big one.

The comparisons between Tendulkar and Kohli have been in discussions among cricket fans and pundits for the past couple of years at least. While the Indian captain seems to be beating the Master Blaster in most milestones he is achieving in his career, the gulf of difference between the two for the 19,000-run milestone is a fine proof of Kohli's incredible potential.

While Tendulkar had reached the landmark in 432 innings, Kohli took 33 less as he reached the same point in his cricketing career in 399 innings. Following the duo are West Indies' Brian Lara (433), Australia's Ricky Ponting (444) and South Africa's Jacques Kallis (458), in the top 5.

The 30-year-old Delhi lad ended 2018 with a total of 2735 international runs, which comprised 11 hundreds, to cap-off another stellar calendar year.

Having concluded the year with 1322 runs in 13 Tests, averaging over 55, Kohli hence ended the period as the top-scoring batsman in the format, justifying his position as the No. 1 Test batsman in the world. Kohli also scored the most number of hundreds (5) in the traditional format of the game in 2018. In ODIs, meanwhile, Virat scored 1202 runs in 14 matches, at a Bradman-esque average of 133, that brought about a total of 6 centuries.

With India leading the 4-match Test series against Australia 2-1, the 30-year-old is likely to become the first Indian skipper to beat the Aussies in their own home in a Test series.