5 Players who can overhaul Rohit Sharma’s record of 264 in ODIs

Before the turn of the millennium, the likes of Saeed Anwar, Gary Kirsten, Vivian Richards and Sachin Tendulkar came very close to breaching the 200 run mark in ODIs. The advent of T20 cricket in the mid-noughties was bound to have an impact in 50-over cricket and the hypothesis was validated when Sachin Tendulkar finally made the first ever ODI double hundred in 2010. Perhaps, it took a little longer than most people thought. Inevitably, the first man to reach that milestone had to be the great Tendulkar, arguably the best batsman to have played the ODI format. He achieved what nobody ever had in the 39-year history of the format. Post Tendulkar’s 200*, six more double hundreds were scored in the next eight years, the last one being Rohit Sharma of India when Sri Lanka toured India in December, 2017. Indian opener Rohit Sharma remains the only player to have scored a 200 thrice in a career. His second one, a gigantic 264, is also the highest score recorded by a batsman in the history of ODI cricket. 264 really shake you up as a cricket fan if you think deeply about it. There was a time when a similar score was considered to be safe in a 50-over game. But gone are the days when 300 was considered an unassailable target. The way batsmen are going about their business, 375 has become the new 300. Can Rohit’s record ever be overhauled? The way cricket is played in today’s day and age perhaps, yes. There are a few contenders who could dethrone the Indian right-hander from the top of the pile. Let us have a look at them: 1. David Warner David Warner of Australia. (Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images) The Australian vice-captain has registered five scores of over 150 in ODI so far in his career, an all-time record he shares with Tendulkar. The dynamic opener has a very good chance of getting to Rohit’s record because of the attacking nature of his game. His highest score is 179, which was his third score in excess of 170 in this format. He eclipsed his previous best score of 178 by just a run but failed to get his team across the line against South Africa earlier in the year. The 178 was scored against Afghanistan in the World Cup two years ago. When Warner was out caught, more than 12 overs still remained in the Australia innings. If he had remained unbeaten till the last ball of the innings, the opener had a very good chance of eclipsing Rohit’s record. He bettered his previous best score of 178 by just a run but failed to get his team across the line against South Africa earlier in the year. The 178 was scored against Afghanistan in the World Cup two years ago. When Warner was out caught, more than 12 overs still remained in the Australia innings. If he had remained unbeaten till the last ball of the innings, the opener had a very good chance of eclipsing Rohit’s record. 2. Martin Guptill Martin Guptill of New Zealand. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images) Batsmen who open the innings have a very good chance of getting close to Rohit’s record and one such opener is Kiwi, Martin Guptill. When Guptill gets going, there are only a few batsmen in the world who can strike the ball as cleanly as the 30-year old. Guptill already has a double century to his name, the only by a New Zealander, and is certainly a candidate who can overhaul the 264-run mark. Guptill has a penchant for getting big scores, he has played big knocks: 189* and 180* in the past and there is no reason to deny that this right-hander can’t overtake Rohit Sharma. Guptill’s strength is to maintain a good shape and generate immense power from his stillness at the crease. 3. Quinton de Kock South Africa’s Quinton de Kock walks off the field after being caught behind by England’s Jos Buttler for 98. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images) Just 24 years of age, de Kock has already notched up 12 ODI hundreds. The southpaw has a very impressive strike rate of 93.89. He generates a lot of power in his strokes through his wrists which help him to scythe the bowlers for runs across the ground. The Proteas stumper stunned the world when he made a career-best 178 against Australia at Centurion last year. Due to his knock, South Africa went past Australia’s score of 294 in just 36.2 overs. De Kock faced just 113 deliveries for his knock and was dismissed in the 34th over. If he can maintain the same clip over 50 overs, de Kock has a great chance of breaking Rohit Sharma’s record. 4. Alex Hales Alex Hales of England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images) English opener carried his form into domestic cricket where he recorded a stunning 187* in the finals of the Royal London One-Day Cup last week to lead his side Nottinghamshire to the title win. Hales, being an opener, can well go past 264. Against Pakistan last year, the 28-year old made a whirlwind 171 but fell in the 37th over of the innings. If he had carried on, he had exactly 78 balls to work with in order to get close to Sharma’s record. The right-hander has a strong bottom hand grip which enables him to hit powerful shots across the ground. His induction into the ODI team has coincided with the rise of England in the format. Hales must bat out the entire innings if he wants to get anywhere near the record score of 264. 5. Steve Smith Steve Smith of Australia acknowledges the spectators after winning game. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images) The Australian captain has already played two big knocks in ODI cricket: 149 and 164. Smith is still work-in-progress as far as ODIs are concerned. He is like wine, getting better and better with age. In the near future, Smith has a chance of getting close to Rohit’s record if he gets out in the middle to bat in the first over. The 28-year old is a busy player who plays the angles down very well. He can score all around the wicket and of lately, has added the big shots in his game too. The right-hander has had two outstanding years in the ODI arena and is expected to take his game to another level in the due course of time.

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5 Players who can overhaul Rohit Sharma’s record of 264 in ODIs

Maybe Rohit's 264 will always remain unconquered but there are few players who could give the Indian a run for his money.

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