Former Indian captain Virat Kohli's recent form against New Zealand has seen him make significant strides in the record books. Ahead of the first Test in Bengaluru, Kohli was ranked 11th on the list of highest run-scorers for India against New Zealand in Tests, with 866 runs.

Virat Kohli eyes multiple records in Pune TestHowever, a vital knock of 70 runs in the second innings at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium has propelled him up the rankings. Now, he finds himself fifth on the list with 936 runs.

His innings in Bengaluru saw him surpass several notable names in the India vs New Zealand rivalry. He leapfrogged over Cheteshwar Pujara (867 runs), New Zealand's own Kane Williamson (871 runs), Virender Sehwag (883 runs), Bert Sutcliffe (885 runs) and Ross Taylor (890 runs) to claim the fifth spot.

Virat Kohli closes in on GT Dowling

With 936 runs to his name, Kohli is now just 29 runs away from overtaking New Zealand legend Graham Dowling (965 runs). Taking his current form into account, it is likely that he will surpass Dowling in the second Test, which is scheduled to begin on October 24 in Pune.

Virat Kohli eyes elite list

Kohli has hit three centuries against New Zealand. This places him alongside several iconic players, including GT Dowling, Ross Taylor, Bert Sutcliffe, John Wright, Jesse Ryder, Sourav Ganguly and Vijay Manjrekar.

Should Kohli manage to score a century in the second Test, he would leap past these legends and move closer to the top of the list for most centuries scored in India-New Zealand Tests.

Currently, only Rahul Dravid (6 centuries), Sachin Tendulkar (4 centuries) and Brendon McCullum (4 centuries) have more hundreds in the bilateral Test series between the two nations.