New Delhi: India captain Virat Kohli has recorded another century, albeit not on the pitch this time. Virat Kohli has become the first cricketer in the world to have 100 million followers on social media platform Instagram. The 32-year-old Kohli is also the first person in the Asia-Pacific region to achieve the feat. “Virat Kohli – the first cricket star to hit 100 million followers on Instagram,” the ICC tweeted.
Kohli is also the fourth most followed sportsperson on Instagram. Portugal football star Cristiano Ronaldo tops the chart with 265 million followers. He is ahead of Argentina football captain and FC Barcelona legend Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Neymar. They are second and third in the list with 186 million and 147 million followers respectively.
The others in 100 million club are Hollywood actor and former pro-wrestler Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson, American singer-songwriter Beyonce, and Ariana Grande.
Kohli, regarded as the one of the best batsmen in the world, has 27 centuries in Test matches and 43 tons in ODI cricket. For over two years now, Kohli has been the most followed person on Instagram in India.
Currently Kohli is in Ahmedabad preparing for the fourth Test against England which begins Thursday. The Indian skipper has been without a Test hundred for a long time. He certainly will look to make amends, if the pitch is good. India need to play out a draw only in the Test to seal their spot in the World Test Championship final. If they do so, they will meet New Zealand for the title.
India lost the first Test against England at Chennai, but bounced back to win the second and third Test of the series.