"Nothing short of fantastic" - Greg Chappell on Virat Kohli scoring 50 ODI centuries

Australian cricketing great and former Team India head coach Greg Chappell has called Virat Kohli's achievement of 50 ODI centuries "nothing short of fantastic".

Kohli went past Sachin Tendulkar's record of 49 ODI hundreds while scoring a 113-ball 117 against New Zealand in the first semi-final of the 2023 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday.

Tendulkar scored 49 in his career of 452 ODI innings (1989-2012), while Kohli did one better in just 279 innings (2008-2023).

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"The feat of Virat Kohli to become the first man to score 50 centuries in ODI cricket is nothing short of fantastic," he told Cricbuzz. "The fact that he surpassed The Little Master to achieve the feat puts the magnitude of the performance into perspective."

On the backs of Kohli's century, Shreyas Iyer's fiery 105 (70), and crucial contributions from Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma, India put up 397 runs batting first.

Mohammed Shami's record-breaking 7/57 then helped India bowl New Zealand out for 327 to complete a 70-run win.

Australia will need to find something "really extra-special": Greg Chappell

In the second semi-final, Australia defeated South Africa by three wickets in a low-scoring thriller to enter their eighth ODI World Cup final. The Aussies have won five from the previous seven but Chappell believes this one won't be easy.

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"It will be up to this highly cohesive Australian team to find something really extra-special from within themselves, if they are to make it their sixth win in eight World Cup finals -- a phenomenal record. India has played brilliantly and does not have a chink in their armour," he said.

India have won all of their matches in the tournament while Australia are on an eight-game winning streak after losing their first two matches.

The all-important final will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

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