The former captain of the Indian Cricket Team, Virat Kohli, has once again made his mark in the record books. He has been named in the ICC ODI Team of the Year for 2023, marking his entry into the ICC Team of the Year across all formats for the 14th time. This achievement surpasses the previous record held by the legendary Captain Cool, MS Dhoni.

This announcement is a source of comfort for Indian cricket fans, especially after Virat had to withdraw from the first two matches of the five-match Test series against England due to personal reasons. The absence of the star batter is expected to be a significant setback for Rohit Sharma’s team. Currently, top contenders to replace Kohli include Cheteshwar Pujara, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, and Rinku Singh.

'Cheeku' has now set a new record by surpassing MS Dhoni’s tally of 13 appearances in the ICC Teams of the Year. His inclusion in the ICC ODI Team of the Year 2023 is credited to his outstanding performance in the World Cup, where he racked up a total of 765 runs. This feat not only surpassed Sachin Tendulkar’s record for the most runs in a single World Cup but also saw him break Tendulkar's all-time record for the most ODI centuries. His 50th ton came against New Zealand in the semi-final of the World Cup 2023. Also, Kohli concluded the year with 1377 runs, the second-highest for a batsman.

Here is a list of Indian players with the most appearances in ICC Team of the Year across all formats:

  • Virat Kohli: 14
  • MS Dhoni: 13
  • Rohit Sharma: 8
  • Sachin Tendulkar: 7
  • Virender Sehwag: 6
  • Ravichandran Ashwin: 5
  • Jasprit Bumrah: 4

The current ICC Team of the Year for 2023 includes Virat Kohli, along with Captain Rohit Sharma and four other Indian players. The Playing XI comprises Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Travis Head, Virat Kohli, Daryl Mitchell, Heinrich Klaasen, Marco Jansen, Adam Zampa, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Shami.

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