Test cricket has lost its biggest star with Virat Kohli's retirement from the longer format.
The India great — contemporary cricket's version of Lionel Messi in soccer — put up some staggering numbers across his test career as the beacon of a team followed by 1.4 billion people.
Click to Gallery
FILE - India's Virat Kohli gestures to a member of a crowd during play on the first day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, on Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake, File)
FILE - India's captain Virat Kohli kisses the field after scoring a double-century during day two of the first cricket Test match against West Indies at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua, on July 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan, File)
FILE - India's batsman Virat Kohli runs as he celebrates his century during the first day of their cricket test match against South Africa at Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec. 18, 2013. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli watches the ball after playing a shot during play on the second day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, on Dec. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli plays a shot during the third one day international cricket match between India and England in Ahmedabad , India, on Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/ Ajit Solanki, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli, celebrates his hundred runs during the World Cup Pool B match against Pakistan in Adelaide, Australia, on Feb. 15, 2015. (AP Photo/James Elsby, File)
Here's a flavor of those stats over his 14-year test career:
The number of double-hundreds made by Kohli in tests, the most by an India player and the fourth most in test history. Six of them came in an extraordinary 18-month, 33-innings spell from July 2016 to December 2017 — a period in which he was the No. 1 batter in the format.
The number of test centuries made by Kohli — only 14 players have more. He also had 31 half-centuries.
Kohli's batting average in tests.
The number of test appearances made by Kohli. He was captain in 68 tests, winning 40 of them — the most for an Indian captain and fourth overall in test cricket.
Kohli's highest test score, made against South Africa in Pune, India, in October 2019. He finished the innings not out and it was the last of his double centuries.
The number of test runs made by Kohli, which ranks him fourth on the all-time list of India players behind fellow greats Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar.
The number of followers Kohli has on Instagram.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
FILE - India's Virat Kohli gestures to a member of a crowd during play on the first day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, on Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake, File)
FILE - India's captain Virat Kohli kisses the field after scoring a double-century during day two of the first cricket Test match against West Indies at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua, on July 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan, File)
FILE - India's batsman Virat Kohli runs as he celebrates his century during the first day of their cricket test match against South Africa at Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec. 18, 2013. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli watches the ball after playing a shot during play on the second day of the fourth cricket test between Australia and India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia, on Dec. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli plays a shot during the third one day international cricket match between India and England in Ahmedabad , India, on Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/ Ajit Solanki, File)
FILE - India's Virat Kohli, celebrates his hundred runs during the World Cup Pool B match against Pakistan in Adelaide, Australia, on Feb. 15, 2015. (AP Photo/James Elsby, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil.
The U.S. Coast Guard boarded the tanker, named Veronica, early Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media. The ship had previously passed through Venezuelan waters and was operating in defiance of President Donald Trump’s "established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean,” she said.
U.S. Southern Command said Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to take part in the operation alongside a Coast Guard tactical team, which Noem said conducted the boarding as in previous raids. The military said the ship was seized “without incident.”
Several U.S. government social media accounts posted brief videos that appeared to show various parts of the ship’s capture. Black-and-white footage showed at least four helicopters approaching the ship before hovering over the deck while armed troops dropped down by rope. At least nine people could be seen on the deck of the ship.
The Veronica is the sixth sanctioned tanker seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by Trump’s administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products and the fourth since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid almost two weeks ago.
The Veronica last transmitted its location on Jan. 3 as being at anchor off the coast of Aruba, just north of Venezuela’s main oil terminal. According to the data it transmitted at the time, it was partially filled with crude.
The ship is currently listed as flying the flag of Guyana and is considered part of the shadow fleet that moves cargoes of oil in violation of U.S. sanctions.
According to its registration data, the ship also has been known as the Gallileo, owned and managed by a company in Russia. In addition, a tanker with the same registration number previously sailed under the name Pegas and was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for moving cargoes of illicit Russian oil.
As with prior posts about such raids, Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law. Noem argued that the multiple captures show that “there is no outrunning or escaping American justice.”
Speaking to reporters at the White House later Thursday, Noem declined to say how many sanctioned oil tankers the U.S. is tracking or whether the government is keeping tabs on freighters beyond the Caribbean Sea.
“I can’t speak to the specifics of the operation, although we are watching the entire shadow fleet and how they’re moving,” she told reporters.
However, other officials in Trump's Republican administration have made clear that they see the actions as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuela’s battered oil industry and restore its economy.
Trump met with executives from oil companies last week to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution. His administration has said it expects to sell at least 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil.
This story has been corrected to show the Veronica is the fourth, not the third, tanker seized by U.S. forces since Maduro’s capture and the ship also has been known as the Gallileo, not the Galileo.
Associated Press writer Ben Finley contributed to this report.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference at Harry Reid International Airport, Nov. 22, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill, File)
