Ravichandran Ashwin has spent years sharing the dressing room with both Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, but when asked to settle the never-ending debate over who is the better batsman, the former India spinner has a clear answer.For Ashwin, Tendulkar remains ahead of Kohli, and his reasoning goes beyond numbers. The era in which Tendulkar played and the enormous responsibility he carried as Indian cricket‘s biggest hope are central to Ashwin’s argument.The Tendulkar-Kohli comparison has continued to grow as Kohli has rewritten several ODI records previously held by his idol. Kohli has already moved ahead of Tendulkar’s tally of ODI centuries, while Tendulkar remains well ahead in Test cricket. Their contrasting records across formats have ensured that the debate is unlikely to disappear even after Kohli’s retirement.Ashwin believes Kohli has several qualities that make him exceptional, particularly his fitness, consistency and ability to score hundreds regularly. But when it comes to pure skill, he feels Tendulkar remains unmatched.“There should never be any comparisons between Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, and every time I will stick my neck out and say, Sachin Tendulkar. On two counts. First, I am a big fan. And second, look at the kind of innings he has played. He was Indian cricket’s hope. It is not Virat Kohli’s fault. If he were to bat at No. 3 in any generation, he would have been a champion player, no doubt. But look at the rules, in the first innings, after 34 overs against West Indies in the 1st ODI, they should have played with one ball. The ball got old in daylight. Sachin Tendulkar played a lot of 50-overs cricket in day-time. We don’t play that. Five fielders are inside the circle. Two new balls. These are huge factors. And to compare people of two generations, it’s sinister in my mind,” Ashwin said on his YouTube show ‘Ash ki Baat’.There is, however, one achievement that could make Ashwin put Kohli on the same pedestal as Tendulkar.That is the elusive landmark of 100 international centuries.Kohli currently has 86 international hundreds and needs another 14 to reach the mark Tendulkar set 14 years ago. With India expected to play another 30-odd ODIs, including next year’s World Cup in South Africa, the opportunity remains for Kohli to chase the record.Kohli has already said that the 2027 World Cup will be his final appearance at the tournament. Ashwin also does not expect his former captain to continue beyond that event, making the pursuit of 100 centuries particularly significant.For Ashwin, reaching that figure would transform the comparison. If Kohli manages to complete a century of international hundreds before or during the 2027 World Cup, Ashwin believes the two batting greats would finally stand on the same level.“As a well-wisher, I really wish he hangs up his boots by then (2027 World Cup) because he has committed that it will be his last World Cup. To maintain such elite level of fitness and batting requires a lot of effort, and I’m sure behind closed doors, he is continuing to put in that work. He doesn’t want to do it after that. Keeping all that in mind, logically, he can do it – score 100 centuries – and if he does, I will take my hat off. It will be a remarkable achievement. And in this home run, if he is able to do it, I would say both of them are on the same level, without a shadow of a doubt,” added Ashwin.
