Kohli reclaims ODI rankings throne

Skipper’s ton in third match guides India towards 2-1 series win

NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli reclaimed his throne as the world's best ODI batsman on Monday after smashing his sixth ton of the year in India's series-clinching victory over New Zealand.

The India skipper, who cracked a 106-ball 113 in Kanpur, surpassed South Africa's AB de Villiers as number one as he resumed the top spot after a gap of just 10 days.

Kohli was the top run-scorer in the New Zealand series, accumulating 263 over three matches including his 32nd ODI century on Sunday as India secured a 2-1 series victory.

He also paired with opener Rohit Sharma for a 230-run stand as they became the first batsmen to share four double century ODI partnerships.

Kohli, 28, who also tops the Twenty20 batting chart, also became the fastest batsman to reach 9,000 ODI runs in the game at Kanpur's Green Park Stadium.

Kohli lauds bowler’s effort

Kohli hailed India's death bowling after paceman Jasprit Bumrah helped the hosts pull off a thrilling six-run win in the third ODI.

Bumrah claimed three wickets and effected a crucial run out of dangerman Tom Latham in the 48th over to make the visitors falter in their 338-run chase at Kanpur's Green Park Stadium.

"It was a pretty close game. Credit to New Zealand, they fought hard in this series and forced us to play our best cricket," Kohli said at the post-match presentation. "I decided that I let the bowler do what he wants to do, and that's why I was calm. Glad the bowlers came out on top,"

Kohli, who led India to their seventh successive bilateral series triumph, added: "The aim is always to help the team win games, regardless of how many runs I score. Very happy we could get another one in the bag.”