The debate over the comparison of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli is recently one of the most heated debates. There is no doubt that MSD has been the most successful captain in Indian cricket, with a plethora of awards and wins to his name. On the other side, Kohli has been the most efficient and consistent cricketer worldwide in recent years.
Let’s see how both players compare in the Test cricket format:
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Match appeared | 90 | 96 |
| Innings played | 144 | 162 |
| Runs scored | 4876 | 7765 |
| Average | 38.09 | 51.09 |
| Hundreds | 6 | 27 |
| Fifties | 33 | 27 |
| Best | 224 | 254* |
The statistics for batting in Test match cricket clearly show that Kohli is way ahead of Dhoni. Kohli has scored 27 test centuries, whereas Dhoni has managed to rack up only 6 centuries. Kohli also has an average of more than 50 in Test cricket, which is quite remarkable.
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Match appeared | 350 | 254 |
| Innings played | 297 | 242 |
| Runs scored | 10773 | 12169 |
| Average | 50.57 | 59.07 |
| Strike Rate | 87.56 | 93.25 |
| Hundreds | 10 | 43 |
| Fifties | 73 | 62 |
| Best | 183* | 183 |
The ODI statistics between Dhoni and Kohli are not too far apart. While Kohli has scored more centuries than Dhoni, he is batting at number 3, and MSD was positioned at the 5th or 6th spot. This led to Kohli having more time and balls to play.
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Matches appeared | 98 | 90 |
| Innings played | 85 | 85 |
| Runs scored | 1617 | 3216 |
| Average | 37.60 | 52.72 |
| Strike Rate | 126.13 | 138.56 |
| Hundreds | 0 | 0 |
| Fifties | 2 | 29 |
| Best | 56 | 94* |
The T20 stats also reflect that Virat Kohli has performed better than MSD more due to the position he bats at.
| Statistics | MS Dhoni (CSK) | Virat Kohli (RCB) |
| Matches appeared | 220 | 207 |
| Innings played | 193 | 199 |
| Runs scored | 4746 | 6283 |
| Average | 39.55 | 37.4 |
| Strike rate | 135.83 | 129.95 |
| Hundreds | 0 | 5 |
| Fifties | 23 | 42 |
| Best | 84 not out | 113 |
If we examine the Dhoni and Kohli IPL records, we can see that the record is a tie. Kohli surpasses Dhoni when it comes to the number of runs made as well as centuries scored. However, we should be aware that Dhoni has been awarded 4 IPL trophies for CSK, and Kohli has not yet achieved this feat. Also, IPL 2021 marked Kohli’s final IPL as captain of RCB.
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Matches played | 60 | 65 |
| Wins | 27 | 38 |
| Loss | 18 | 16 |
| Draw | 15 | 11 |
| Win % | 45 | 58.46 |
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Match played | 200 | 95 |
| Wins | 110 | 65 |
| Losses | 74 | 27 |
| Tied | 5 | 1 |
| No Results | 11 | 2 |
| Win % | 59.5 | 70.43 |
| Statistics | MS Dhoni | Virat Kohli |
| Matches played | 72 | 46 |
| Wins | 41 | 27 |
| Losses | 28 | 15 |
| Tied | 1 | 2 |
| No results | 2 | 2 |
| Win % | 59.2 | 65.2 |
In the end, we can safely say that Virat Kohli, as a batter, is more successful than MSD. But Dhoni has been a shining star as captain of the Indian team in ODIs, Tests, and T20. As captain, Dhoni has won 4 IPL titles, as well as both the T20 and the ODI World Cup.
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