India opener Rohit Sharma got past India captain Virat Kohli as the highest run-getter of 2019 in ODIs. Rohit, who was playing catch up with Kohli till the three-match series against West Indies, beat Kohli in the 2nd ODI by courtesy of his 159-run knock in Visakhaptanam. In the series-deciding 3rd ODI at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, Rohit scored 63 to give India a fine start in their 316-run chase to end the year as the highest run-scorer in ODIs in 2019. Though Virat Kohli was adjudged Man of the Match for his 85-run knock but it was not enough to topple Rohit from the top spot.
Rohit has scored 1,490 runs from 28 ODI matches this year, while Kohli finished with 1,377 runs from 26 matches.Windies’ batter Shai Hope has the third-highest ODI runs in 2019 as he finished with 1,345 runs from 28 matches.
Riding on the back of brilliant performances from Rohit, Kohli and KL Rahul, India beat West Indies by 4 wickets in In the third ODI at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack to clinch the three-match series 2-1.
“Extremely grateful for the year I’ve had. A World Cup victory would have been nice, but as a team, throughout the year, whether red ball or white ball cricket, we came together really well. Personally I’ve enjoyed batting, but there’s no way I’m stopping. There’s an exciting year coming up,” Rohit said after the match.
Rohit also ended as with the highest individual score for India in ODIs for a record 7th consecutive year. Rohit’s 159 is the highest score by an Indian batsman in 2019.
Highest individual scores for India in ODI since 2013
2013: Rohit Sharma (209)
2014: Rohit Sharma (264)
2015: Rohit Sharma (150)
2016: Rohit Sharma (171*)
2017: Rohit Sharma (208*)
2018: Rohit Sharma (162)
Rohit also broke Sri Lanka’s Sanath Jayasuriya’s 22-year-long record of scoring the most international runs as an opener in a calendar year.
Prior to the match, Rohit needed just nine runs to break the record and the batsman managed it with ease against West Indies.
Earlier this year, Rohit had scored five centuries in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in England. As a result, he became the first batsman to record five 100-plus scores in a single edition of the tournament.
During the second ODI at Visakhapatnam, the 32-year-old also went past 11,000 List A runs.