Virat Kohli becomes first batter to complete 7000 runs in IPL 

On Saturday, May 6, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star batter Virat Kohli completed 7000 runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He achieved the milestone during their match against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.

Kohli was just 12 runs short of the mark ahead of the Capitals fixture. He opened his account with a well-timed cover drive against Khaleel Ahmed off the second ball of the innings.

Kohli smashed Capitals left-arm spinner Axar Patel through point for his second boundary of the day. That shot helped him become the first batter in the history of the IPL to score 7000 IPL runs. In the process, Kohi also completed 1000 IPL runs against Delhi Capitals.

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Virat Kohli achieved the milestone in his 225th innings for RCB. He is the only player to represent a single franchise in all 16 seasons of the cash-rich league.

The former RCB captain is among the top five highest run-scorers of this season and also a contender for the Orange Cap. Kohli's RCB opening partner and captain Faf du Plessis leads the scoring charts.

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How has Virat Kohli fared over the years?

Virat Kohli was drafted into the RCB squad under Rahul Dravid following his U19 World Cup success in Malaysia both as captain and batter.

Barring the first two seasons, the RCB talisman has scored more than 300 runs in each year of the IPL.

The year 2016 was unforgettable for Kohli as he smashed a record-breaking 973 runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 152.03, including four centuries.

Kohli has also scored the most runs by a captain in the IPL - 4994 runs in 143 matches - with MS Dhoni (4632) being the second on the list.

Kohli has the second most 50-plus scores (54) in the IPL only behind current Delhi Capitals captain David Warner (64).

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