Alastair Cook picks Virat Kohli over Sachin Tendulkar in list of 5 all-time cricket greats

Former England captain Alastair Cook has named Virat Kohli ahead of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar in his list of all-time greats. Virat Kohli has been touted by many as the successor to Sachin Tendulkar, who is the highest run-getter in both Tests and ODIs to this date. Kohli has established himself as one of the greatest batsmen of his generation with consistent performances in all formats of the game. Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Jacques Kallis also found themselves in Alastair Cook's list of players, who came close to matching West Indies legend Brian Lara. 

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Alastair Cook on spotting Brian Lara's genius in 2004

Former England captain Alastair Cook, in an Instagram Q&A session with the Sunday Times =, recalled Brian Lara's heroics in a tour game in 2004. Cook said that he was part of an MCC side that faced the West Indies ahead of their home series against the men from the Caribbean. The MCC bowling attack boasting the like of Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard and Min Patel, who were regular England cricketers.

However, Brian Lara hit them around the park to score a scintillating hundred between lunch and tea. Alastair Cook said that Lara's innings made him realise his genius and said that he was on a different level of batsmanship. 

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Alastair Cook picks Indian captain Virat Kohli over Sachin Tendulkar 

When quizzed about who came close to matching the genius of Brian Lara, Alastair Cook revealed that former captains Ricky Ponting and Kumar Sangakkara came close, while South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis also found himself mentioned. Alastair Cook added that Virat Kohli finds a spot in that list too because of his ability to score freely across all formats of the game. Alastair Cook's decision to snub Sachin Tendulkar came as a surprise to many considering that the legendary batsman was the first to go past Brian Lara's record of most runs scored in Test cricket.

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