IND vs NZ 2026: 'Virat Kohli is the fittest guy in Indian team, can play till 45' - Former New Zealand pacer lauds star batter after Indore ton

Virat Kohli has been in staggering form in ODI cricket since last year. After winning the Player of the Series award against South Africa, the former India captain carried confidence into the ODI matches against New Zealand. In three matches, he aggregated 240 runs at an average of 80 and a strike rate of 105.26.

He smashed one of his finest centuries in the format in the third ODI at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore. While Kohli is 37 years old, former New Zealand pacer Simon Doull believes that he is still the fittest guy in the Indian team. The cricketer-turned-commentator was especially impressed by Kohli's hunger to win games for his side and ability to run hard as ever between the wickets. In the end, Doull backed the Delhi batter to continue playing international cricket, at least till he is 45 years old.

"Some of the shots were just crisp and clean. Beyond that, it's how he manoeuvres the field and how he runs between the wickets. There's still an air of youth about him. Despite his age and experience, he'd probably still be the fittest guy on that side. That's professionalism," Doull told JioHotstar.

"The willingness to keep trying to win games, to drag your team back into the contest when they're so far behind, and to run as hard as he does, for his own runs and for his teammates. There's so much to love about how he's playing at the moment. May he stick around in international cricket until he's 44 or 45 years old," he added.

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On Sunday, in the third ODI, Kohli took his tally to 54 ODI centuries, five more than legendary Sachin Tendulkar. He also became the most prolific No. 3 batter in ODI cricket, surpassing the legendary Ricky Ponting's tally of 12,662 runs. Kohli will now have a long break before returning to international cricket. He has retired from T20Is and hence will miss the World Cup, which begins next month. However, he will be back in action during the Indian Premier League (IPL), representing defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru.