When India thrashed the West Indies by a massive margin of 224 runs in the fourth ODI at Mumbai, everything fell in place for India except one. It was a thoroughly professional performance from the team on a night when everything clicked except one. It was India’s biggest win in terms of margin of runs against Test-playing nations, but still, one record eluded India.
In trying to run down an innocuous delivery from Roach to the third man, Kohli edged it to the keeper to the huge disappointment of one and all. Sangakkara’s record remains intact for the time being. Sangakkara’s record is unique in the sense that all his 4 hundred came against four different countries in World Cup 2015.
On the positive side, Kohli’s failure gave an opportunity for Ambati Rayudu to score his third hundred in ODI and in the process cemented his place in the team.
Apart from Kohli, four other current players have achieved this rare feat of 3 consecutive ODI hundreds. They are Ross Taylor, Quinton De Kock, Babar Azam, and Jonny Bairstow. While Ross Taylor is at the autumn of his career, De Kock no more has the patience to play the big innings. It will be difficult for Babar Azam and Bairstow to start all over again to reach 3 consecutive hundreds first and then go on to equal Kumar’s record.
To achieve this rare feat, a batsman should be in top form to reach that level of consistency. The batsman should be batting at the top 3 spots. His team should preferably be batting first on all such occasions as sometimes when his team is chasing low scores, he might be stranded at 95 not out.
Most of all, he should have the temperament and the game to adapt to different conditions if matches are spread over different countries. The player should have the temperament of a Test batsman to achieve this rare feat in ODI.
In this article, we will discuss 4 current players who could equal Sangakkara’s record.
When Virat Kohli won the toss and decided to bat first, everyone expected Kohli to equal Kumar Sangakkara’s record of 4 consecutive ODI hundreds. When Kohli walked to the crease at the fall of Dhawan’s wicket, he was confidence personified. He reached 16 off 16 balls before disaster struck.
When India thrashed the West Indies by a massive margin of 224 runs in the fourth ODI at Mumbai, everything fell in place for India except one. It was a thoroughly professional performance from the team on a night when everything clicked except one. It was India’s biggest win in terms of margin of runs against Test-playing nations, but still, one record eluded India.
In trying to run down an innocuous delivery from Roach to the third man, Kohli edged it to the keeper to the huge disappointment of one and all. Sangakkara’s record remains intact for the time being. Sangakkara’s record is unique in the sense that all his 4 hundred came against four different countries in World Cup 2015.
On the positive side, Kohli’s failure gave an opportunity for Ambati Rayudu to score his third hundred in ODI and in the process cemented his place in the team.
Apart from Kohli, four other current players have achieved this rare feat of 3 consecutive ODI hundreds. They are Ross Taylor, Quinton De Kock, Babar Azam, and Jonny Bairstow. While Ross Taylor is at the autumn of his career, De Kock no more has the patience to play the big innings. It will be difficult for Babar Azam and Bairstow to start all over again to reach 3 consecutive hundreds first and then go on to equal Kumar’s record.
To achieve this rare feat, a batsman should be in top form to reach that level of consistency. The batsman should be batting at the top 3 spots. His team should preferably be batting first on all such occasions as sometimes when his team is chasing low scores, he might be stranded at 95 not out.
Most of all, he should have the temperament and the game to adapt to different conditions if matches are spread over different countries. The player should have the temperament of a Test batsman to achieve this rare feat in ODI.
In this article, we will discuss 4 current players who could equal Sangakkara’s record.
1. Virat Kohli
The first and foremost on the list is Virat Kohli himself. Kohli became the only Indian player to score 3 consecutive hundreds in the ODIs. Before that, Kohli had scored back-to-back hundreds in ODIs on 6 separate occasions. It should not be a problem for King Kohli to repeat the feat yet again and then edge past Sangakkara.
Kohli’s current form and consistency should help him in achieving that rare feat in the near future. After his failure to achieve the rare feat in Mumbai, Kohli would be more determined next time around. In any case, one can always expect the unexpected from Kohli.
2. Kane Williamson
Williamson has the game and consistency to achieve this rare feat. He has so far scored 11 hundred in 121 ODI innings. Williamson came close to scoring 3 consecutive hundreds in 2015 when he scored 93,118 & 90 in three innings.
The New Zealand team depends a lot on Williamson to deliver every time he goes out to bat. Williamson is comfortable against pace and spin and is used to playing long innings for his team.
After playing 51 T20 international matches for his country, Williamson can change gear and up the ante, if need to be. The experience of playing the IPL changed Williamson into an attacking batsman who could strike at 100 in a one-day match. His sound batting technique helps him in accumulating runs without getting dismissed.
Williamson is also a mentally tough player to match his batting skills. Williamson is poised to become New Zealand’s greatest batsman, both in Tests and limited-overs cricket.
Being the No 1 batsman for a team which has a weak batting line-up should motivate Williamson to score big every time he walks out to bat. He is the ideal candidate to equal Sangakkara’s record.
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