Former Pakistan all-rounder Shoaib Malik lauded Virat Kohli as the Indian star batter marked his 35th birthday with record-equalling 49th ODI century during the ICC World Cup match against South Africa at the Eden Gardens on Sunday.

The prolific right-hander Kohli equalled Sachin Tendulkar's record of most ODI hundreds during his unbeaten 101-run innings.

Malik heaped praises on Kohli's fitness at the age of 35.

"His physical fitness is next level. Today [Sunday] he celebrated his 35th birthday, but it feels like he is a 25-year-old when he is running between the wickets. So, physical fitness is very very important, because that makes you consistent like Kohli. You see him come out to bat after fielding for 50 overs.

"There is no difference in him. And he fields in the hot spots as well. He is always there in important places and that's there when you fitness like Virat Kohli," Malik was quoted as saying on A Sports.

"Words are not enough to praise Kohli. I have no doubt that he is the man who equaled the record today, the great Sachin Tendulkar. But there is one more interesting thing, his hundreds win matches for his side. That's what matters," Malik added.

"To make a hundred is a massive deal; credit should be given for it. But along with it, if you win the game, there is nothing beyond that. One more interesting thing about Virat is that he assesses the conditions well. Even if he gets out, it feels like one batter was playing well and from one end the runs were flowing, like we have seen in this World Cup," he stated.

Apart from scoring a hundred, Kohli also became the third Indian batter after Rohit Sharma and Sachin Tendulkar to score 500 plus runs in a single edition of the World Cup. He also completed 6000 ODI runs at home and 3000 runs in international cricket against South Africa.