Rohit Sharma is on a record-breaking streak. The Indian opening batsman, who smashed records every time he stepped out to bat against in the recently concluded Test series South Africa, beat Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni to add two fresh feathers to his already illustrious hat during the first T20I game against Bangladesh. Rohit first overtook, former Indian captain, Dhoni, to become the most capped Indian player in Twenty20 Internationals before beating Kohli to reclaim his position at the top of T20I Runs charts and become the highest run-scorer in T20I cricket in the 1st Twenty20 match against Bangladesh in Delhi. Kohli though is just two runs away from overtaking Rohit again and Dhoni needs one more appearance to match Rohit’s record. Take a look at the top five T20I run-scorers and five players with most Twenty20 Internationals appearances. Rohit Sharma Scripts T20I World Record, Surpasses Virat Kohli to Become Highest Run-Scorer During IND vs BAN 1st Twenty20 Match.
Rohit, 32, started the 1st T20I international between India and Bangladesh seven runs behind Kohli, who was the highest run-scorer in T20Is before Rohit overtook him with two boundaries in four deliveries. The right-handed opener now has scored 2452 runs from 99 T20I appearances two runs more than Kohli, who has 2450 runs from 72 Twenty20 matches. Rohit and Kohli are the only Indian players in the top five T20I run-scorers, which has two New Zealanders and one former international cricketer. The Indian pair are also only two of the six batsmen to score over 2000 runs in Twenty20 International cricket. Take a look at the top-five run-scorers in T20I cricket. Rohit Sharma Overtakes MS Dhoni to Become Most Capped T20I Indian Player, Achieves Feat During 1st IND vs BAN Twenty20 Match.
S.No. | Name | Matches | Runs | 50/ 100 |
1 | Rohit Sharma (IND) | 99 | 2452 | 17/4 |
2 | Virat Kohli (IND) | 72 | 2450 | 22/0 |
3 | Martin Guptill (NZ) | 80 | 2326 | 14/ 2 |
4 | Shoaib Malik (PAK) | 111 | 2263 | 7/ 0 |
5 | Brendon McCullum (NZ) | 71 | 2140 | 13/ 2 |
The 32-year-old also recorded another feat on November 3, 2019 (Sunday) when he stepped out for the toss in the 1st T20I game against Bangladesh at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Rohit, who is the stand-in captain for India in the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, overtook Dhoni for the record of making appearances for India in Twenty20 internationals. Dhoni, who is on a three-month sabbatical break from cricket, hasn’t played a game post the ICC 2019 Cricket World Cup. Suresh Raina with 78 T20I appearances is the third-best Indian while Kohli is fourth.
Shoaib Malik leads this prestigious list of players to have made most appearances T20I internationals. Only six men’s cricketers have made 90 or more T20I appearances to date with the sixth player being Kevin O’Brien of Ireland. Take a look at the top five players with most T20I appearances.
S.NO | Name | Matches | Career Span | Runs/ Wickets |
1 | Shoaib Malik (PAK) | 111 | 2006-2019 | 2263/28 |
2 | Shahid Afridi (PAK) | 99 | 2006-2018 | 1416/98 |
3 | Rohit Sharma (IND) | 99 | 2007-2019 | 2452/ 1 |
4 | MS Dhoni (PAK) | 98 | 2006-2019 | 1617/ 0 |
5 | Ross Taylor (NZ) | 92 | 2006-2019 | 1699/ 0 |
Meanwhile, despite creating multiple records and adding new feathers to his hat, Rohit failed to light up the Firoz Shah Kotla ground. He started well with two boundaries off just four deliveries in the opening over of the game but was dismissed in the final delivery of the over. India eventually went to lose the match by seven wickets and with three deliveries in hand after a brilliant half-century by Mushfiqur Rahim that comprised of eight boundaries – including four successive in the penultimate over – and one maximum.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 04, 2019 12:11 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).