Chris Gayle or Rohit Sharma? Virat Kohli picks the best T20 opener of all time

by

New Delhi: Former India captain Virat Kohli recently revealed his pick for the greatest T20 opener of all time. Kohli, who is himself regarded as one of the best batters of the generation, revealed his choice during a recent interaction with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season.

Kohli played a game of This or That in a video shared by RCB, where he was asked to pick the best T20 opener of all time. The former India skipper was given two choices each time and had to pick one between them. He started by picking Adam Gilchrist over Sunil Narine before sticking with his former teammate Virender Sehwag.

Kohli picked Sehwag over the likes of Travis Head, Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Shikhar Dhawan and even the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. However, the batting maestro picked West Indies legend Chris Gayle over Sehwag and his current India teammate Rohit Sharma as the best T20 opener of all time.

Watch Virat Kohli picks his best T20 opener of all time:

Gayle is widely considered the most dangerous and the best T20 openers of all time. The West Indies legend used to be a nightmare to face for the best of bowlers during his peak. Gayle is the highest run-getter of all time in T20 cricket, with a whopping 14,562 runs in 463 matches at an average of over 36 and a strike rate of 144.75, including 88 half-centuries and 22 tons.

He played for multiple T20 franchises across the globe and was known for his ability to decimate bowling attacks. Gayle enjoyed a great stint at RCB, where he shared the dressing room with Kohli. The duo enjoyed some great partnerships together in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Gayle remains the 3rd-highest run-getter for RCB in the IPL with 4965 runs in 142 matches at a strike rate of 148.96, including 31 fifties and six centuries.

Virat Kohli to return to action for RCB in IPL 2026

Kohli will return to action for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the upcoming IPL 2026, which is set to get underway from March 28. The batting maestro has already begun preparations for the new season, where RCB will start as the defending champions after winning their maiden title last year. RCB will lock horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad in the season opener at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on March 28.