Delhi: Virat Kohli once again showed the power of his bat in the first ODI against West Indies. Chasing the target of 296 runs, Kohli scored a brilliant century and played an important role in helping India win by 8 wickets. With this innings, he took his number of international centuries to 86 and took another step towards Sachin Tendulkar's record of 100 centuries.

Amidst Kohli's brilliant performance, the discussion about his future is also intense. Former Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin expressed his opinion on Kohli's career and his retirement after the 2027 ODI World Cup on his YouTube channel 'Ash ki Baat'.

Why might Kohli's journey end after the 2027 World Cup?

Kohli has already indicated that the 2027 ODI World Cup could be the last big stop of his international career. Ashwin also believes that the chances of Kohli continuing to play ODI cricket after this deadline are very less.

Ashwin said that as a well-wisher, he wants Kohli to bid goodbye to his career after the 2027 World Cup, because he himself has described this tournament as his last World Cup.

According to Ashwin, the biggest challenge for Kohli is not just to score runs on the field, but to continuously maintain the level of fitness and batting form that is expected of him.

How difficult will it be for Kohli to continue playing only ODIs?

Kohli has already retired from Test and T20 International cricket. In such a situation, if he plays only ODI cricket after 2027, then Ashwin does not see much practicality in it.

He said that apart from the visible performance on the field, a player also has to work hard behind the scenes. To maintain fitness at a top level and maintain batting form, one has to work continuously.

Ashwin believes that if Kohli wants to play ODI even after 2027, he will have to go through the same hard work for a long time. This is the reason why they see less chances of Kohli playing after 2027.

If Kohli reaches 100 centuries, will he be equal to Sachin?

The biggest personal goal of Kohli's career is now considered to be reaching the figure of 100 international centuries. Sachin Tendulkar had made the record of scoring 100 centuries in international cricket and now Kohli is the batsman who has come closest to that figure.

Ashwin said that if Kohli completes 100 international centuries, it will be a huge achievement in itself. He even said that if Kohli achieves this position then Sachin and Kohli can be kept at the same level.