Top 5 batters with most hundreds for India at the No. 3 position in ODIs ft. Virat Kohli

Batting superstar Virat Kohli has been in terrific form with the willow in the ongoing three-match ODI series against South Africa. In two innings, he has scored 237 runs at an average of 118.50 and a strike rate of 111.27. The right-hander batter is currently the leading run-getter in the series and has struck 18 fours and nine sixes across his two visits to the crease.

Kohli began the ODI series against South Africa with 135 off 120 balls at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi. The 37-year-old was named Player of the Match as the Men in Blue won the contest by 17 runs. In the second one-dayer in Raipur, the former India captain notched up 102 off 93 balls. India put up 358-5 on the board batting first, but South Africa won the contest by four wickets.

Kohli, who now has 53 one-day tons to his credit, tops the list of batters with most hundreds in the format at the No. 3 position. In this listicle, we look at the top five batters with most hundreds for Team India at the one-down position in ODIs.

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#5 Gautam Gambhir (3)

Team India's current head coach Gautam Gambhir is fifth on the list. He batted at No. 3 for India in 48 ODI matches, scoring 1,810 runs at an average of 42.09 and a strike rate of 83.48, with three hundreds and 13 half-centuries.

Gambhir's best of 150* came off 137 balls against Sri Lanka in Kolkata in December 2009 and featured 14 fours. The southpaw scored 113 off 119 balls against Australia in Sydney in February 2008. He also struck 102* off 101 balls against the Aussies in Brisbane during the same one-day series.

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#4 Sourav Ganguly (3)

Like Gambhir, former India captain Sourav Ganguly also struck three hundreds while batting at the No. 3 position in one-dayers. However, while Gambhir played close to 50 ODIs at No. 3, Ganguly featured in 30 one-dayers. In 29 innings, he scored 1,334 runs at an average of 53.36 and a strike rate of 75.32, with three hundreds and nine half-centuries.

Ganguly's best at No. 3 in ODIs was 112*, which came off 119 balls against Namibia in Pietermaritzburg in the 2003 World Cup. During the same tournament, the southpaw scored 107* off 120 against Kenya in Cape Town and 111* off 114 balls against the same opponent in the semifinal in Durban.

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#3 VVS Laxman (6)

VVS Laxman was unlucky not to play more ODIs for Team India. He did have a decent record in the format. In 60 matches at the No. 3 position for the Men in Blue, he scored 1,966 runs at an average of 35.74 and a strike rate of 74.52, with the aid of six hundreds and nine half-centuries.

Of Laxman's six tons, four came against his favorite opponent Australia. He scored 101 off 107 in Margao (April 2001), 102 off 134 in Gwalior (October 2003), 103* off 113 in Brisbane (January 2004) and 106* off 130 in Sydney (January 2004). Laxman also scored a series-defining 107 off 104 against Pakistan in Lahore during the 2004 tour.

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#2 Rahul Dravid (7)

Former India captain and ex-head coach Rahul Dravid was highly underrated as a No. 3 batter for the team in ODIs. In 112 matches at the one-down position, he scored exactly 4,000 runs at an average of 38.83 and a strike rate of 69.60, with the aid of seven hundreds and 27 half-centuries.

Player	Matches	Runs	Average	SR	HS	100s	50s
Virat Kohli	243	12,371	60.94	94.42	183	46	65
Rahul Dravid	112	4,000	38.83	69.60	153	7	27
VVS Laxman	60	1,966	35.74	74.52	131	6	9
Sourav Ganguly	30	1,334	53.56	75.32	112*	3	9
Gautam Gambhir	48	1,810	42.09	83.48	150*	3	13

(Top 5 list of batters with most hundreds for India at No. 3 in ODIs)

Dravid's best of 153 came off 153 balls against New Zealand in Hyderabad in November 1999 and featured 15 fours and two sixes. He also scored an iconic 145 off 129 balls against Sri Lanka in Taunton in the 1999 World Cup. Dravid slammed 17 fours and a six in the aggressive knock.

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#1 Virat Kohli (46)

Kohli has an unbelievable 46 tons while batting at the No. 3 position in ODIs. And, he's not finished yet. In 243 matches, he has amassed 2,371 runs at an average of 60.94 and a strike rate of 94.42. Apart from 46 tons, the 37-year-old has also registered 65 half-centuries.

Kohli's best of 183 was registered against Pakistan in Mirpur in the 2012 Asia Cup. The scintillating 148-ball knock featured 22 fours and a six. He also struck 166* off 110 deliveries against Sri Lanka in Thiruvananthapuram (January 2023), 100* off just 52 balls against Australia in Jaipur (October 2013) and 160* off 159 balls against South Africa in Cape Town (February 2018).