Is Rohit Sharma the best opening batter?
Rohit Sharma has emerged as one of the most effortless batters to have ever graced the game of cricket.
Despite his struggle in the initial period, the team management believed in his talent, and he proved them right. While the major change Rohit witnessed in his performance was when captain MS Dhoni insisted him to open the innings back in 2013.
That decision not only transformed Rohit’s career as a player, but also provided India with a reliable opening batter, who is still ruling the spot.
The right-hand batter has made many records as an opener, and before we conclude whether Rohit is the best opening batter of all time or not, let’s look at some of his records in ODIs.
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Highest individual score in ODIs
Rohit Sharma stunned the world with his magical stroke ability with the bat when he smashed a record-breaking 264 in the one-day format, which is still unbroken and looks unrealistic. Sharma took 173 balls to score 264 against Sri Lanka in 2014 and is still the only batter in cricket history to cross the 250-run mark in a single ODI innings.
3 double centuries in 50-over format
After Virender Sehwag, who taught the world how to dominate the game from the start, Rohit Sharma followed the same route, and with his fearless shot selection play he managed to record three double centuries in the one-day format.
There are ten other players who scored a double ton in ODIs but once each, and Rohit did it thrice.
Most centuries in single edition of ODI World Cup
Rohit Sharma was invincible in the 2019 ODI World Cup when he hit five hundreds in the single edition of the ODI World Cup history. Sharma struck 648 runs in nine innings at an average of 81 and a strike-rate of 98.33 in that edition of the mega event.
10000+ runs in one-day internationals
The swashbuckling batter has recently gone past legendary MS Dhoni in the most runs tally in one-day cricket among Indian batters and is currently in fifth spot. While he is still actively playing the format, Sharma can become the third highest soon, as he is hardly 400 runs away to reach that position.
3rd in most centuries list
The top 3 spots in this list are dominated by Indians, and Rohit Sharma is in the third place currently with 31 tons. Rohit would have recorded more if he started his career as an opener, but nevertheless, he still managed to reach the third place.
Is Rohit Sharma the best opening batter in modern day cricket?
Well, going by records and the current form, it is safe to say that Rohit Sharma is among the best opening batters in modern day cricket.
