A bilateral series has been the staple diet for ODIs for quite some time now. The noise around its relevance has recently gained momentum. There is a growing belief that bilateral engagements should be scrapped. But the bilateral series across nations really thrived for the major part of the twenty-first century. Let us look at Most Runs In A Single Bilateral ODI Series.
Batsmen especially made most of the flat pitches, fielding restrictions to add to their numbers. There isn’t a surprise that batters with the most runs in a single bilateral series feature during this period.
We look at 5 batters with the Most Runs In A Single Bilateral ODI Series:
#5 Hamilton Masakadza vs Kenya, 2009 [467 runs]
He was one of the most underrated cricketers of his time. Hamilton Masakadza was as solid an opener as a team would need. He had a fantastic series against Kenya in 2009. The opener went on a rampage scoring runs consistently. He reserved the best for the last in the 5-match series. Masakadza notched up 467 runs in the series averaging 116.75. He became the first batsman to score multiple 150-plus scores in a single series. His record stood for four years.
#4 George Bailey vs India, 2013 [478 runs]
The then Australian captain, George Bailey had a fun outing against India in one of the most high-scoring series of all time. Bailey had a series to remember against the host nation wherein he amassed 478 runs in 5 innings at an average of 95.60. Bailey’s clean hitting took the Indian team by surprise with his frequent onslaught.
#3 Rohit Sharma vs Australia, 2013 [491 runs]
It looked like George Bailey would easily claim the honours for scoring the most runs in a bilateral series. But newly appointed opener, Rohit Sharma had other ideas in the last game of the series. Rohit Sharma went big in the final ODI against Bengaluru. He scored 209, his first double century. Sharma had scored a century (141*) and a half-century to go along with his epic double. Sharma finished the series with a massive 491 runs averaging 122.75. The record stood for 5 years!
#2 Fakhar Zaman vs Zimbabwe, 2018 [515 runs]
He made the world take notice of his talent when he struck a sparkling century in the Champions Trophy final in 2017. Fakhar Zaman had a whirlwind bilateral ODI series against Zimbabwe in 2018. He smacked 515 runs in 5 games averaging a massive 257.5! Zaman scored a half-century in four out of the five games. He notched up his maiden double hundred in the process.
#1 Virat Kohli vs South Africa, 2018 [558 runs]
He was a batsman batting on a different level altogether in 2018. Virat Kohli was unstoppable in 2018. He had his magnificent returns in the series against South Africa in 2018. Kohli broke several records in the 6-match ODI series. He single-handedly helped India thump the Proteas, 5-1 in their own den. Kohli piled up 558 runs across 6 games comprising 3 centuries. He averaged a mind-boggling 186 in this historic series!
