6 Crucial Milestones RCB’s Virat Kohli Aims to Achieve in IPL 2025
IPL 2025: Team India’s veteran batter Virat Kohli is heading to feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and is the only player to represent the same franchise since its inception in 2008.
The 18th season of the tournament marks a special coincidence as the 36-year-old’s jersey number is 18. While several fans strongly believe it as a sentiment indicating that this could be the season for RCB’s iconic batter to add several record-breaking achievements to his IPL career, few others deem it to be a superstition.
Ranked as the IPL’s leading run-scorer, the right-handed batter is just a few steps away from setting incredible benchmarks, whether in terms of accumulating runs, number of fours, 50-plus scores, half-centuries, and centuries.
Let’s take a deeper look at those six crucial milestones Virat can attain in IPL 2025 to rank as the greatest batter in the league’s history.
1. 400th T20 Cap On the Way
Virat Kohli will create history when he makes his on-field presence for RCB in the season opener of the IPL 2025 on March 22, as he will become the first Indian cricketer to appear in 400 T20s, 300 ODIs, and 100 Tests.
Also, he would join the list as the third Indian player to play 400-plus T20 matches after Rohit Sharma and Dinesh Karthik.
| Player | Career Span | T20 Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Rohit Sharma | 2007 to Present | 448 |
| Dinesh Karthik | 2006 to Present | 412 |
| Virat Kohli | 2007 to Present | 399 |
2. 13,000 T20 Run-Mark Coming Soon
Kohli currently with 12,886 runs in 399 T20s, requires just 114 runs in the upcoming season to become the first Indian batter to reach the 13,000-run mark in T20 cricket.
| Indian Players | Career Span | T20 Runs | Matches Played | Innings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virat Kohli | 2007 to present | 12,886 | 399 | 382 |
| Rohit Sharma | 2007 to present | 11,830 | 448 | 435 |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 2007 to 2024 | 9,797 | 334 | 331 |
However, the seasoned batter has an uphill task to surpass the records of these five overseas cricketers, who are ahead of him in terms of T20 runs accumulated:
| Player | Nation | Career Span | T20 Runs | Matches | Innings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Gayle | West Indies | 2005 to 2022 | 14,562 | 463 | 455 |
| Alex Hales | England | 2009 to present | 13,610 | 494 | 490 |
| Kieron Pollard | West Indies | 2006 to 2025 | 13,537 | 695 | 617 |
| Shoaib Malik | Pakistan | 2005 to present | 13,535 | 553 | 512 |
| David Warner | Australia | 2007 to present | 12,913 | 399 | 398 |
3. Closer to 100 Fifties and 10 Centuries in T20s
Virat Kohli, with 97 half-centuries, ranks behind former Australian batter David Warner in the list and requires three more to become the second batter with 100 fifties in T20 cricket.
| Player | Number of 50s in T20 |
|---|---|
| David Warner | 108 |
| Virat Kohli | 97 |
In IPL 2025, Kohli could become the third batter to smash 10 centuries in T20 cricket as he currently ranks behind batter Chris Gayle and Babar Azam in the list:
| Player | Nation | T20 Centuries |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Gayle | West Indies | 22 |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | 11 |
| Virat Kohli | India | 9 |
4. Overtake Warner’s Record of Most 50-Plus IPL Scores
Considering the fifty-plus scores in the IPL, Kohli is set to overtake Warner’s record. The Indian batting superstar with 63 such scores requires four more to eclipse the former Aussie batter’s record of 66.
As Warner went unsold in the IPL 2025 mega auction, it’s time for Virat to make use of this valuable opportunity to add another exceptional milestone to his career. The following is the list of the top five batters with the most 50-plus IPL scores:
| Player | IPL matches played | IPL innings played | 50+ scores in IPL |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Warner | 184 | 184 | 66 |
| Virat Kohli | 252 | 244 | 63 |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 222 | 221 | 53 |
| Rohit Sharma | 257 | 252 | 45 |
| Ab de Villiers | 184 | 170 | 43 |
5. Rank as Second player with 60-plus IPL half-centuries
Virat Kohli has a higher chance of becoming the second player in IPL history to record 60-plus half-centuries. With 55 fifties, the RCB’s opening batter requires five more to achieve this rare record and currently ranks behind Warner’s record (62 fifties) in the following list:
| Player | IPL Career Span | Most IPL Fifties |
|---|---|---|
| David Warner | 2009 to 2024 | 62 |
| Virat Kohli | 2008 to present | 55 |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 2008 to 2024 | 51 |
| Rohit Sharma | 2008 to present | 43 |
| Ab de Villiers | 2008 to 2021 | 40 |
Suppose, Kohli manages to score eight half-centuries this season, then he would surpass David’s record to achieve most fifties in IPL. However, the Indian batting stalwart needs to maintain his consistency and try to target a minimum of 50 runs in 8 out of 14 league matches.
6. Surpass Shikhar Dhawan’s Record of Most Fours in IPL History
The previous season in 2024 witnessed Virat Kohli becoming the second batter to smash 700+ IPL fours and targets to top the charts by smacking the most fours in IPL history. He requires another 64 boundaries to easily overtake the retired IPL batter Shikhar Dhawan’s tally of 768 fours.
Ahead of the 18th season’s commencement, these are the top five batters who have struck a maximum number of boundaries in their IPL career:
| Player | IPL Career Span | Number of 4s in IPL |
|---|---|---|
| Shikhar Dhawan | 2008 to 2024 | 768 |
| Virat Kohli | 2008 to Present | 705 |
| David Warner | 2009 to 2024 | 663 |
| Rohit Sharma | 2008 to present | 599 |
| Suresh Raina | 2008 to 2021 | 506 |
As there are 14 league matches for each team before playoffs, Kohli needs to hit at least 4 to 5 boundaries per match to achieve this feat according to the following estimation:
- (4 Fours) x (14 League Matches) = 64 Fours in IPL 2025
- (5 Fours) x (14 League Matches)= 70 Fours in IPL 2025
Suppose, RCB qualifies for knockouts this season, then it would be an added advantage for the run-machine Kohli.
Other Notable Records that Virat Kohli Can Achieve in IPL 2025
These are the additional records Virat Kohli can accomplish in IPL 2025:
- Second cricketer after David Warner to win the orange cap twice in IPL, as Kohli earlier won in the 2016 and 2024 editions.
- 2 more centuries to become the first cricketer to register 10 IPL tons.
- 3 more tons to become the second batter with the most T20 centuries and surpass Babar Azam’s record (11 T20 centuries). Currently, Chris Gayle leads the charts with 22 tons in T20s.
Final Thoughts
Two weeks after a triumphant campaign in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Kohli rediscovered his best form in white-ball cricket and aims for another silverware. Ultimately, the senior batter is on his way to surpass numerous sensational records set by the great superstars of the T20 format in the forthcoming IPL season.
