Most Runs In An ODI Series By A Captain: The bilateral series in ODI cricket is speculated to be losing its sheen. There are naysayers who believe that the ODI format itself is on the verge of extinction. But when two evenly contested sides battle out then the thrill is unmatchable. The bilateral ODI series played over so many decades has provided wholesome entertainment. It is the captain of the side at times who have set the ball rolling in such a series. There have been many instances where ODI captains have top scored in a bilateral series.
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Most Runs In An ODI Series By A Captain | Where the captain scored the most runs in an ODI series:
#3 Virat Kohli – 453
There was a period between 2018-19 where Virat Kohli touched a different zone in batting. Centuries flowed like water from his bat. He kept churning out hundreds after hundreds. Kohli scaled new peaks as an ODI batter in the two-year period. He had a brilliant ODI series against West Indies in 2018-19, a foe all too familiar for Kohli. The pattern for a Kohli special was set in the very first game as India hunted down a tall total of 323 with consummate ease.
Rohit Sharma and Kohli put together a double-century stand to quell the Windies’ challenge. The 246-run stand that came in 31 overs left the Windies bowlers stunned. Kohli who walked in early at the fall of the opening wicket immediately took charge. He smashed 107 balls-140 and showed signs of what is to come in the series.
Kohli during this phase went from 9,000 to 10,000 runs in just 11 innings. He was in such a phase where he scored another century in the second ODI. It was down to Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer’s brilliance that the game ended in a tie. Kohli created yet another record in the third ODI when he smashed a third consecutive century. The innings though ended in a losing cause. Kohli’s numbers in the 5-match series read a whopping 453 at an average of 151.00 and a strike rate of 112.96. And this series wasn’t even his best of the year!
#2 George Bailey – 478
It was one of the most batting-dominated series ever played on Indian soil. None of the completed games had a first-inning score of less than 300. The fact that this series was played in 2013, 10 years ago shouldn’t be lost on anyone. It was Australia’s unassuming ever-smiling skipper who wielded the bat like a hammer in this series.
George Bailey scored a brilliant century and 3 attacking fifties to keep Australia in the hunt right till the decider. It was Kohli’s brilliance that stole away his thunder in the Nagpur game where Bailey smashed 156 off just 114 balls. The Australian captain ended the series with a tally of 478 runs at an average of 96.40 and a strike rate of 116.01.
#1 Virat Kohli – 558
It was arguably the finest Virat Kohli has ever batted in an ODI series. Kohli was on a mission to prove something to the world on the tour to South Africa in 2017-18. India had lost the ODI series 2-0 the last time these two sides played in South Africa. Kohli’s intentions were clear from the very first game as his clinical hundred in yet another run-chase took India home.
He went one better in the third ODI on a spicy pitch in Cape Town to take India 3-0 up. Kohli’s 160 saw him hit outrageous strokes at the end of his innings. The entire South African side in response managed just 179. In the final ODI of the 6-match series, Kohli scored a breathtaking century that was devoid of any pressure. His 129 not-out came off just 96 balls. Kohli entered the record books for scoring the most runs in a bilateral series. His numbers of 558 runs in 6 matches at an average of 186.00 and a strike rate of 99.46 seem unreal!
