Virat Kohli proud of fielding work after beating Azharuddin’s outfield catches record

Virat Kohli took the plaudits for becoming the fastest to reach 14,000 runs in one-day internationals (ODIs) on Sunday but he was also proud of his work in the field after the 36-year-old broke a national record that stood for more than two decades.

Kohli’s diving catch to dismiss Naseem Shah during India’s Champions Trophy win over Pakistan was his 157th in ODIs, moving him ahead of Mohammad Azharuddin for the most outfield catches in the format by an Indian player.

Azharuddin took his last ODI catch for India in 2000.

Kohli also caught Khushdil Shah in Pakistan’s final over to take his tally to 158, the third highest in the world, two shy of former Australia captain Ricky Ponting.

Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene holds the record with 218.

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“My job is to focus on my skill and to be able to do the job for the team as much as I can,” said Kohli, who was named player of the match after India won by six wickets.

“And I think one of the key notes there is I kept telling myself in the field, whenever I was feeling a bit down, that I’m going to put my 100% on every ball that I field and some time I will get the rewards for the hard work that I’m putting in on the ground.

“That’s why I take a lot of pride in working hard and running around the field.”

Kohli also holds the record for most ODI centuries and scored his 51st on Sunday, his first in the format since November 2023.