'You never write him off...' - Ricky Ponting heaps praise on star Indian batter after stunning performance in Champions Trophy 2025

Australia's former cricketer Ricky Ponting spoke about the star India batter Virat Kohli and made a clear statement, saying, 'You can never write him off.' Kohli hit a brilliant ton against Pakistan, helping the team win the match and qualify for the semi-finals. The 36-year-old scored his 51st ODI century and the first in the Champions Trophy history. 

"With someone like Virat, you never write him off, because I'm sure he'd be motivated by that [achieving the record], I think. Now that he's gone past me and only two ahead of him, I'm sure he wants to give himself the best chance to be remembered as the all-time leading run scorer in the game. So, as long as the hunger's there, obviously, physically wise, he's probably as fit as he's ever been and works exceptionally hard on that side of his game. So, if the hunger's still there, then I'm never going to write him off," said Ponting on the ICC Review Podcast.

Kohli has been under scrutiny regarding his form for a long time, but one century was enough to shut the criticism. Now that he is back in form, it will be easy for the Indian batters to show their dominance in the tournament. 

Also Watch: Virat Kohli's match-winning century against Pakistan gets celebrated by fans in Islamabad

A little way to go to catch Sachin: Ricky Ponting

Ricky Ponting also mentioned Kohli's records and that he is a little far away from breaking Sachin Tendulkar's record in ODIs. If we look at the stats, Kohli is around 4000 runs away from surpassing Tendulkar's ODI score. If the player manages to play for 2-3 years more, he might easily do it. 

"So, if the hunger's still there, then I'm never going to write him off. I know he's nice and close to Sangakkara now. I don't think it's going to be long, maybe the next game before he goes past Sangakkara. But still, a little way to go to catch Sachin," added Ponting.