Sehwag, who is a legends of the game himself, called Kohli his favourite batter due to his knack to chase targets. "Kohli is a master of chases “, Sehwag said. He is very good in chases and he seems to get the job done every time."

Why Kohli Pipped the Master Blaster?

Sehwag has a lot of respect for Tendulkar but he has ranked Kohli as No. 1 for his consistency and match-winning ability along with the phenomenal record Kohli has in ODIs.

The Indian trails No. 1 Sehwag, who is hailed as the greatest ever batter. “It’s because Tendulkar is my idol,” Sehwag said. “He is my biggest batman I have ever seen. He taught me a lot about how aggressive you can be up there at the top of the order."

At No. 3, Sehwag chose former Pakistan middle-order batter Inzamam-ul-Haq, who reigned in the 1990s and 2000s. His top two were Indian batters — Sachin Tendulkar at No. 2 and Virat Kohli at No. 1.

The rest of the three batters on Sehwag's shortlist are:
3. Inzamam-ul-Haq
4. AB de Villiers
5. chris Gayle

"All these batters are legends, Sehwag said. “They all have a legacy in ODI cricket.”
Virender Sehwag has jaw-dropping stats of his five ODI batters. Sachin Tendulkar is still the leading run-scorer in ODI as he amassed 18,426 runs at an average of 44.83 and a strike rate of 86.23 across 463 matches. Now the guy with the more hundreds than anyone (50) in limited-overs cricket is Virat Kohli with 13,963 runs at an average of 57.93 with a strike rate of 93.52 in 297 matches. Seventh on 11,739 runs at 39.52 and strike rate of 74.24 in 378 matches. The only batsman to have scored 9,577 runs at an average over 50 and a strike rate over 100 or above is AB de Villiers, who had 228 ODIs with an average of 53.50 and a strike rate of 101.09. Gale who was an explosive batter scored 10,480 runs in ODIs at an average of 37.83 at a strike rate of 87.19.

Kohli takes top spot, Tendulkar at No. 2 🤯@virendersehwag reveals his Top 5 ODI batters 🔥

Watch now 👉🏼 pic.twitter.com/3qIf1nmlDN

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) February 17, 2025

Sehwag's statement will invite controversy but only proves the greatness of both Kohli and Sachin. Both batters have achieved incredible things in ODI cricket and they are both deserving of a place in any all-time list.

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