Virender Sehwag is a former Indian cricketer who represented India from 1999 to 2013 and is renowned worldwide for his explosive batting. He is considered one of the best opening batsmen of his era and was a part of the winning squad in the ICC Champions Trophy in 2002.
On 17 February, during a conversation with Cricbuzz, he picked the top 5 ODI batters who played during his career ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy. In his list, two Indian batters and three batters from different countries were there.
He picked Virat Kohli as the Number 1, and Sachin Tendulkar as the Number 2 both of whom belong to India, his own country. At Number 3, he picked Inzamam-ul-Haq from Pakistan, and at Number 4, he picked the former captain AB de Villiers who also played with Sehwag in the IPL for Delhi Capitals. Last but not least, coming on Number 5 is Chris Gayle.
Sehwag’s Super 5: A Closer Look At The Top 5
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli is one the most accomplished cricketers in the ODIs and has achieved numerous milestones in the run. He holds the record for being the fastest player to reach 10,000 runs in just 205 innings, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar’s record by 54 innings.
He also became the fastest to reach 11,000, 12,000, 13,000, and 14,000 runs. He is the first player to score 50 centuries in the ODIs and his personal best score is 183 runs with a batting average of 183 runs. So undoubtedly, he deserved to be on the list.
Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar is a legend in the world of cricket, having played 463 matches in the ODI with a total of 18,426 runs. His highest score is 200 runs and he owns 49 centuries in the ODIs. He has a batting average of 44.83 and has faced 21,368 balls in his ODI career. Needless to say, Sehwag couldn’t be more right to pick him on his list.
Inzamam-ul-Haq
Inzamam-ul-Haq is a retired Pakistani cricketer who also served as the captain of the national team. He has scored 10 centuries in his ODI career with his career best being 137 runs not out. He has played a total of 37 ODI matches and scored 1609 runs in 37 innings. He also scored 13 half-centuries and made a total of 150 boundaries.
AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers is a legendary South African cricketer who has made significant achievements in his ODI career. He has played a total of 228 matches and scored a total of 9,577 runs. He holds the record for the fastest fifty (16 balls), the fastest century (31 balls) and the fastest 159 (62 balls) in history.
He was also named the ICC ODI Player of the Year thrice in 2010, 2014, and 2015. He also played for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) alongside Virender Sehwag, making him an obvious name on the list.
Chris Gayle
Chris Gayle also known as the “The Universe Boss” Gayle has played 301 ODI matches and scored 25 centuries and holds the record for the highest individual score by a left-handed batsman in ODI cricket, which is 215.
He is the second player after Brian Lara to score more than 10,000 runs in the ODI cricket for West Indies. He holds the joint-highest record for hitting the most sixes in an ODI.
