Top 10 Highest individual scores in ODI cricket history
Highest score: 219 by Virender Sehwag
Venue/Occasion: Indore/ 2011 bilateral series
Opponent: West Indies
Stats of the knock: 149 balls/ 25 fours and 7 sixes
Team scores: India - 418 for 5; West Indies innings underway
Impact on the match: India won by 153 runs
What made it truly special: It was special on multiple counts. More than a year ago, when Sachin hit the maiden double ton in ODI cricket, few would have thought that record would be surpassed and in such quick time. The second reason why this became special was also because it took India to its highest ever team score. What a knock it was from the 'Nawab of Najafgarh.' Honestly speaking, it wasn't blatant hitting. It was about some serious determination. He was out to prove a point. The ace opener was not in the best of his form in 2011 and what a way to announce a return to form just before the Australia tour commences in over a week's time. Truly special. Take a bow Viru.
2nd highest score: 200 Not Out by Sachin Tendulkar
Venue/Occasion: Gwalior/ 2010 bilateral series
Opponent: South Africa
Stats of the knock: 147 balls/ 25 fours and 3 sixes
Team scores: India - 401 for 3; South Africa - 248 all out
Impact on the match: India pulverised the South Africans by 153 runs
What made it truly special: It was the most unexpected event in the world of cricket in 2010. As Ravi Shastri said on air while commentating, Sachin indeed became the first player on the planet to hit a double hundred in ODI cricket. The Little Master did not spare a single South African bowler and raced to the majestic mark in the final over. Such was the impact that it completely left the Proteas dazed at the end of the night.
3rd highest score: 194 Not Out by Charles Coventry
Venue/Occasion: Bulawayo/ 2009 bilateral series
Opponent: Bangladesh
Stats of the knock: 156 balls/ 16 fours and 7 sixes
Team scores: Zimbabwe - 312 for 8; Bangladesh - 313 for 6
Impact on the match: It was most unfortunate as this knock could not translate into a win
What made it truly special: Zimbabwe were in a spot of bother when they lost four wickets for just over a hundred runs after nearly half the quota of their overs when the bespectacled Charles Coventry tore into Bangladeshi bowling attack. The little dynamite smashed the Bangladeshi bowlers to all parts of the Queen Sports Club in Bulawayo. It was a majestic knock that fell one run short of breaking the all-time world record for the highest score then held by Saeed Anwar of Pakistan. But, since Coventry was unbeaten, he got priority for the record.
4th highest score: 194 by Saeed Anwar
Venue/Occasion: Chennai/ 1997 Independence Cup Group Fixture
Opponent: India
Stats of the knock: 146 balls/ 22 fours and 5 sixes
Team scores: Pakistan - 327 for 5; India - 292 all out
Impact on the match: Pakistan won by 35 runs
What made it truly special: There is something about Pakistan and Chennai. The Pakistanis simply enjoy playing at Chepauk and long before the amazing Test in 1999 where they beat India, Saeed Anwar showed his love for the track in 1997. The southpaw blasted the Indian bowling line-up on his way to 194 that also took Pakistan to a mammoth 327. In the end, Little Master Sachin Tendulkar got the wicket of Anwar, who was unlucky to miss the double hundred even though he had enough time and overs at his disposal.
5th highest score: 189 by Vivian Richards
Venue/Occasion: Old Trafford/ 1984 bilateral series
Opponent: England
Stats of the knock: 170 balls/ 21 fours and 5 sixes
Team scores: West Indies - 272 for 9 from 55 overs; England - 168 all out
Impact on the match: West Indies beat England by 104 runs
What made it truly special: It was the magical Viv at his very best. We all know how dangerous the smiling assassin can be when he settles down after the first 10 minutes. This match showed every bit of that. The English bowling attack had some big names in it including Ian Botham but none of them could resist the onslaught of Vivian Richards. He was ruthless and got stuck into the bowling. A team total of 272 may look quite modest in modern day cricket but was a big score in those days.
6th highest score: 189 by Sanath Jayasuriya
Venue/Occasion: Sharjah/ 2000 Champions Trophy final
Opponent: India
Stats of the knock: 161 balls/ 21 fours and 4 sixes
Team scores: Sri Lanka - 299 for 5; India - 54 all out
Impact on the match: Helped Sri Lanka thrash India by 245 runs and win the title
What made it truly special: It was the perfect millennium gift from the blade of Sanath Jayasuriya for the Sri Lankan team. The Lankans were in deep trouble following the dismissal of Sangakkara in the 28th over. That is when Jayasuriya took control and hammered the Indian bowling to all parts of the Sharjah cricket ground. Such was the ruthless nature of his strokeplay that the last 10 overs alone produced more than 100 runs for the Lankans and almost took the southpaw to a double hundred. Jayasuriya could have got there had he not been stumped by Vijay Dahiya off the bowling of Sourav Ganguly off the first ball of the 49th over
7th highest score: 188 Not out by Gary Kirsten
Venue/Occasion: Rawalpindi/ 1996 ICC Cricket World Cup
Opponent: United Arab Emirates
Stats of the knock: 159 balls/ 13 fours and 4 sixes
Team scores: South Africa - 321 for 2; UAE
Impact on the match: Helped SA thrash UAE by 169 runs
What made it truly special: The former Indian cricket coach simply loves the sub continent it seems. Long before he won the world cup for India as a coach, Gary Kirsten had made a name for himself with a magnificent knock against the UAE in the 1996 world cup. This inning was all about class and not much to do with flamboyance. It just showed why and how runs can be scored in cricket without much effort if you have great timing and hand-eye coordination
8th highest score: 186 Not Out by Sachin Tendulkar
Venue/Occasion: Hyderabad/ 1999 bilateral series
Opponent: New Zealand
Stats of the knock: 150 balls/ 20 fours and 3 sixes
Team scores: India - 376 for 2; New Zealand - 202 all out
Impact on the match: Helped India thrash NZ by 174 runs
What made it truly special: Sachin enjoys playing at Hyderabad and long before he got that incredible 175 at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium against Australia, he had come up with something special more than a decade ago. It was the old Hyderabad ground of Lal Bahadur Shastri stadium and the smallish boundaries at the venue just about proved to be too small for the Little master. He tore apart New Zealand bowlers on his way to a masterly unbeaten 186 as India smashed out New Zealand by 174 runs. Such was Sachin's dominance on the day that it completely overshadowed another great inning, 153 of Rahul Dravid.
9th highest score: 185 Not Out by Shane Watson
Venue/Occasion: Mirpur/ 2011 bilateral series
Opponent: Bangladesh
Stats of the knock: 96 balls/ 15 fours and 15 sixes
Team scores: Bangladesh - 229 for 7; Australia - 232 for 1
Impact on the match: Helped Australia win the match and the series
What made it truly special: Of all the innings we have talked about in this elite list, this one has to be the most brutal from a fielding side's point of view. Bangladesh, with all their slower bowlers would have thought they had a chance after posting 229 on the board but what hit them in just over an hour of Australia's chase left the whole world stunned. Shane Watson blew away any Bangladeshi resistance with a world record 15 sixes as he smashed 185 in just under 2 hours. I certainly cannot remember the last time such a thing had happened in the world of cricket.
10th highest score: 183 Not Out by Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Venue/Occasion: Jaipur/ 2005 bilateral series
Stats of the knock: 145 balls/ 15 fours and 10 sixes
Team scores: Sri Lanka - 298 for 4; India - 303 for 4
Impact on the match: Helped India beat Sri Lanka by 6 wickets
What made it truly special: How many times in ODI cricket a team scores nearly 300 and still ends on the losing side. The answer of late can many thanks to some blockbuster hitters the game of limited overs cricket has seen. This match and the series was all about unleashing Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The then long-locked Indian wicket-keeper batsman came in to after the fall of Sachin in the very first over and ensured India would not walk away without heads held high at the end of the day. It was a great knock by Dhoni.
Image source: AP, AFP and Reuters
Text Source: India Syndicate
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