Virat Kohli set to break record as India take on Ireland in 1st T20I

Dublin: India captain Virat Kohli will be back in national colours when he leads his country in the first of a two-match Twenty20 series against Ireland starting on Wednesday. While the Men in Blue will hope to acclimatise to the conditions ahead of the long series against England, Kohli is all set to break some records yet again.

The 29-year-old needs just 17 more runs to become the quickest batsman to reach 2000 runs in T20Is. The talismanic skipper currently has 1983 runs to his name in just 54 innings. New Zealand’s Martin Guptill (2271 runs) and Brendon McCullum (2140) took 68 and 66 matches respectively to reach the 200-run mark in the shortest format. The upcoming two-match series against Ireland will be a good opportunity for the right-handed batsman to clinch his maiden tons in T20 internationals. India’s tour of England commences on July 3 with the first of three T20Is. The T20Is will be followed by as many ODIs and five Tests against England.