ODI World Cup 2023: Records already broken in the tournament

The ODI World Cup despite being the least fan-favourite format in recent times in comparison to T20I and Tests has kicked off in some style. Just 10 matches in the tournament and there are already many records that have been broken. With pitches mostly assisting batters there are many batting records that teams or individual players will boast about once the marquee tournament concludes on the 19th of November. Here is a look at these records.

English batters scoring in double-digits

In the opening game of the tournament the defending champions, England took on last year’s runner-up, New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The rematch of the previous edition final of the 2019 Cricket World Cup kicked off the tournament in a record-breaking style. Batting first, the English batters created not just in the ODI World Cups but in the ODI format.

In the history of the format, this was the first when all the 11 players from a team registered scores in double digits. The highest scorer for the defending champions was Joe Root scoring 77 runs while Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes scored the lowest with 11 runs each. 

In the end, their historic record-breaking innings weren’t enough as Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra on their World Cup debuts hit centuries to chase down the target inside 37 overs in the second innings.

South Africa scores big against Sri Lanka

South Africa kicked off their World Cup by putting a humungous total on the board against the 1996 World Cup champion, Sri Lanka. The match being played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi was a run-fest as both teams’ batters broke multiple records.

Highest team score in World Cups

Having lost the toss, South Africa was sent into bat by Sri Lanka. South Africa started slow with just 48 runs in the powerplay. During the middle overs (11-40), South Africa scored 243 runs and looked set for a big total. But it was in the death overs, that South Africa unleashed their attack on a depleted Sri Lankan bowling lineup. They scored 137 runs in the last 10 overs which helped them create the record for the highest team score in ODI World Cups. South Africa finished with 428 runs in the first innings.

Markram scores the fastest century

The record for the fastest century was Irish batter, Kevin O’Brien from the 2011 World Cup. O’Brien smashed his century in just 50 balls. Aiden Markram broke the 12-year record by scoring a century in just 49 balls. He smashed 14 fours and three sixes in his record-breaking innings.

Three centurions for the first time

Having one player from your team score a century often puts a team in a good position in a World Cup match. Having two centurions in your team in a World Cup game guarantees a win in most cases. But having three players score a century is in itself a very rare occurrence in the ODI format. South Africa became the first team to have three different players scoring centuries in a World Cup game when Quinton de Kock, Rassie van der Dussen and Markram scored centuries against Sri Lanka.

Highest runs in a match

In the last edition of the World Cup in 2019, a match between Australia and Bangladesh recorded the most runs scored in a World Cup match. But the run-fest at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi smashed the record for the most runs as both teams scored big and resulted in a total of 754 runs scored in the match. Sri Lankan despite losing the game by 102 runs put up a brave fight with 50+ scores from Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka and Dasun Shanaka helping the 1996 champions score 326 runs.

Scary start for India against Australia

India had restricted Australia to just 199 runs in their first game of the tournament. The bowlers did their job and set their batters with a target of just 200 runs. The Australian pacers, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc gave an early scare to India by picking up three wickets for just two runs. India went on to win the match courtesy of Virat Kohli and KL Rahul. India by winning the match created a rather infamous record of having the lowest runs at the loss of three wickets in a winning cause (2).

Pakistan records highest successful chase

Pakistan started as favourites while playing against Sri Lanka at Hyderabad in their second game of the tournament. Winning the toss, Sri Lanka decided to bat first and scored 344 runs to set up a huge target and a record chase for Pakistan. Pakistan lost two quick wickets of batters, Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam and looked like they would struggle to win the match. Centuries from Abdullah Shafique and Mohammad Rizwan helped the ‘Men in Green’ to successfully chase 345 and break the record for the highest successful chase in the World Cup previously held by Ireland against England.

India beats Afghanistan comfortably

In their second game unlike the first game, the Indian batting lineup did not falter as they comfortably defeated neighbours Afghanistan at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Afghanistan scored 272 runs in the first innings which India chased down in just 35 overs. Rohit Sharma created history not once but thrice against Afghanistan.

Rohit hits most sixes

Rohit Sharma is known for his timing which makes him a dangerous batter once set. The Indian skipper hit five sixes in his innings which made him go past Chris Gayle, ‘The Universe Boss’ for most sixes in international cricket. Chris Gayle hit 553 sixes while Rohit now has 556 sixes to his name in international cricket. The Indian skipper is well on track to become the first batter to hit 600 sixes in international cricket. 

Rohit breaks Sachin’s record

Rohit Sharma smashed yet another century in the World Cup making it his seventh century in the marquee tournament. Sachin Tendulkar and Rohit Sharma were tied with six centuries in the World Cup after the current Indian captain smashed five centuries in the World Cup. This was his seventh century in 19 innings in the World Cup while Sachin took 44 innings to score his six centuries.

Rohit smashes the fastest century by an Indian

Rohit Sharma looked in ominous touch against Afghanistan after a six-ball duck against Australia. The track at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi also suited the batters and Rohit made full use of the slightly shorter boundaries as he scored the fastest century by an Indian in the World Cup. Rohit reached the milestone in 63 balls breaking Virender Sehwag’s record of 81 balls against Bermuda in 2007.