Stuff of dreams: Birthday boy Virat Kohli thrilled after hitting his 49th hundred in front of packed Eden Gardens

After a muted celebration following his record-equalling 49th ODI hundred, Virat Kohli talked up the privilege of representing the country and the opportunity to notch up another landmark on his 35th birthday. Kohli expressed his delight at having got to the milestone on his 35th birthday in front of a massive crowd that was chanting 'Kohli, Kohli' from the time he walked into the middle. | IND vs SA Scorecard | Points Table |

Virat Kohli equaled his idol Sachin Tendulkar's world record of 49 ODI hundreds and he got there 173 matches quicker, establishing his status as one of the greatest ODI battens to have ever played the sport.

The Eden Gardens roared in delight when Virat Kohli got to the landmark in the 49th over of the Indian innings against South Africa in their World Cup 2023 match on Sunday, November 5.

"Well, I mean, every match I get to play for India is a great feeling. To celebrate my birthday in front of such a massive crowd is a gift. I'm grateful to god for giving me the chance to play and contribute to the team's success. It's great to get a hundred on my birthday in front of this big crowd at this great venue," Kohli said.

Virat Kohli came up with a muted celebration as there was no punching of the air, knowing there is a bigger goal in sight. The former captain raised his bat to acknowledge the applause from the crowd.

Kohli finished with 101 not out in 121 balls, hitting 10 boundaries on a humid afternoon in Kolkata. There was no six hit from the batting great as he ran hard between wickets, flaunting his fitness again.

I TRIED TO TAKE IT DEEP: KOHLI

India posted 326 in their quota of 50 overs after handy cameos from Suryakumar Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. However, the highlight of the Indian innings was the 134-run partnership between Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer.

The two batters got together after India lost openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill following a blazing start at the Eden Gardens. And the going got tough on a difficult pitch as spinner Keshav Maharaj tightened the screws after sending Gill back with a ripper.

Kohli and Iyer took their time in the middle and only looked to accelerate after getting to thier fifties. Kohli and Iyer did not let the frustration get to them as they were composed in the middle. The going was difficult for new battens and the likes of KL Rahul were not able to get going from the word go.

"I and Shreyas had a chat in the middle and wanted to stitch a partnership and try to take it deep. That was what was communicated to me by the team management, Shreyas played well, and we got a few more runs towards the end. Didn't think that we would get 326 but good that we did.

We had a lot of chat about it in the Asia Cup as well. We bat at 3 and 4. so this was the partnership that was needed to take the game forward. We don't have Hardik in the team, and a wicket or two could have cost us. So we had to dig deep and take the innings deep," he added.

Both India and South Africa have already sealed their semi-final berths and Sunday's clash in Kolkata was lookedas one that would decide the table-topper of World Cup 2023.