10 best innings played by Suresh Raina

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Suresh Raina, with his powerful pick-up shot over midwicket and inside-out drives in the covers, makes cricket look more beautiful and adventurous.

The left-hander's energetic batting and sublime timing pump the adrenaline of spectators and he is regarded as one of the finest entertainers in cricket.

The southpaw was an essential cog in India's middle order during the last decade and on several occasions, his fearless batting rescued India from a tight spot.

Here is a compilation of ten such knocks which came from the willow of Suresh Raina.


#10- 81* vs England at Faridabad, 2006

In the pursuit of 227 runs against England, half of India's team was back in the pavilion in the 25th over with the score at 92. The Faridabad pitch was slowing doing, making it tough for the batsmen to play their shots and the bowling artillery of James Anderson, Andrew Flintoff, and Liam Plunkett was spitting venom.

In such tense situation, two young turks soaked in the pressure and responded effectively. MS Dhoni played the second fiddle, while in the driver's seat was a 19-year-old Suresh Raina playing his 8th international inning.

With their quick running between the wickets and calm heads, the duo built match-winning partnership and after Dhoni's fall, Raina guided India home along with Irfan Pathan. In the process, the left-hander completed his maiden half-century, and in style.

#9. 116* vs Bangladesh at Karachi, 2008

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In the Asia Cup, on a flat wicket, Bangladesh scored 283 runs but after a strong start, India was at 56 for two wickets.

Suresh Raina, who had scores of 101 and 84 in the last two innings, rescued India from the tight corner and steered the team home. He added 139 runs with Gautam Gambhir for the third wicket and then tagged with Yuvraj Singh to complete the proceedings.

With his sublime batting, he notched up his second hundred and aced the chase.

#8. 71* vs Australia at Visakhapatnam- 2010

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In the series of three ODIs' this was the only match that yielded result as the first and the third game was abandoned due to rain.

In the second ODI at Visakhapatnam, Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh kept India on the track in the pursuit of 290 runs. But Yuvraj perished in the 34th over and the gates were opened for Australia.

But Raina tagged with Kohli and kept things in control. Kohli too departed after scoring a hundred and MS Dhoni, India's most trusted finisher lasted for only one ball. With two wickets in one over John Hastings brought the visitors back into the match.

However, the cool and calm Raina took the reins in his hands and guided the chase. He smashed 71 runs from just 47 balls and ensured that there were no more hiccups in the chase.

#7. 82 vs West Indies at Kingston, 2011

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After amassing impressive runs on flat wickets, Raina's Test match temperament was effectively challenged in the West Indies in 2011 where India played on dry and bowling friendly surfaces.

In the first Test, the Caribbean pace and spin battery reduced India to six down for 85 runs. With no frontline batsmen to seek support from, a young Raina took on the responsibility of the innings on his shoulders and repaired the damage.

A half-century from Harbhajan Singh helped and Raina pushed India beyond 200. The southpaw was the last Indian batsman to get out and scored a Valliant and gutsy 82 runs. His innings allowed India to reach to 246 which proved decisive in the end as the visitors won the game by 63 runs.

#6. 110* vs Zimbabwe, Auckland, 2015

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Things were falling apart for Zimbabwe in the 2015 World Cup while India's performances were improving with every match. Hence, in the contest between the two nations, no one gave Zimbabwe any chance.

But banking on Brendon Taylor's gritty and Valliant 138 runs and Tinashe Panyangara's probing new ball bowling, Zimbabwe pushed India to a corner. Once again the middle order came to the rescue with MS Dhoni and Raina shouldering the responsibility.

Raina weathered the storm by staying quiet in the initial stages and when the bowling side ran out of steam, he upped the ante. He produced his aggressive strokes in the later stages to close the gates.

Once again, a hundred from Raina took India home.

#5. 120 vs Sri Lanka at Colombo, 2010

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While making his ODI debut against Sri Lanka, Raina had bitter memories as he was out for a first ball duck but five years later he made his Test debut against the same opponent and painted a completely different picture.

On a flat wicket, Sri Lanka amassed 642 runs while India's response was even better with Sehwag getting 99 and Tendulkar looking solid. The debutant Raina made the most of the conditions and added 256 runs with Tendulkar.

The southpaw made a century on his debut and was out for 120 runs. India ended with 707 runs and the Test resulted in an inconsequential draw.

#4. 100 vs England at Cardiff, 2014

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For a batsman who was criticized as incapable of handling short-pitch bowling, a hundred in England and that too against a pace artillery consisting of James Anderson, Chris Woakes, Chris Jorden and Ben Stokes could be the best response he can offer.

Raina came to bat in the 24th over with India already in a commanding position. He kept the scoreboard ticking with his smart batting and effective placements. The presence of Dhoni at the other end allowed him to steal singles and doubles quickly while the occasional bad delivery allowed the left-hander to free his arms.

He batted for more than 20 overs, and when he finally departed in the 47th over, he had pushed England out of the contest, had scored a hundred at a strike rate of 133.33 and more importantly had created a reputation for being a man for all occasions.

#3. 49* vs Australia at Sydney, 2016

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Shane Watson's terrific 124 runs enabled Australia to reach to 197 in the last T20 game of the series in 2016 but the duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli kept India in the chase with their respective fifties.

But the duo departed in quick succession and India lost their way. The comeback man, Yuvraj Singh wasn't fluent but Raina took the center stage and produced boundaries at will.

In the 18th over, he slammed two consecutive fours off the last two balls against Andrew Tye to keep things calm and with two runs needed off the last ball, he went airborne over the point region to loot a four and stamped India's victory.

#2. 101* vs South Africa at Gros Islet, 2010

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Raina's heroics in IPL had created a reputation for him as an ideal T20 batsman who could balance aggression with calmness. But big knocks eluded him when he donned the blue jersey of the Indian team.

Finally, the opportunity came in the ICC world T20 in 2010 and the left-hand batsman grabbed it eagerly. He came to bat on the third ball of the innings but remained strong deep into it.

He milked runs in the powerplays and then exploded in the death overs to become the first Indian to score a hundred in all three formats of the game. He handled the threat of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Kallis with ease and slammed a ton off 60 balls.

The next high score in the team was 37 by Yuvraj and thus it was a one man show that routed South Africa.

#1. 34*vs Australia at Ahmedabad and 36* vs Pakistan at Mohali , 2011

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For the most part of the 2011 world cup, Raina warmed the benches but he was roped in the team in the later stages and the southpaw made his mark by rising to the occasion during the toughest times.

In the quarter-final game against Australia, in a tense chase, India kept on losing wickets and when Raina came to the crease, the game was still in the balance. With 74 needed off 12 overs and that too against the world champions, the home team was in pressure.

Raina came to the fore and batted with Yuvraj to stitch a match-winning partnership. The left-hander faced 28 balls and scored only three boundary shots. But he kept the required run -rate in check. His six against Bret Lee was monumental and it stamped India's win.

In the semi-final match against Pakistan, India lost wickets and the momentum in the middle overs and was on the brink of imploding. However, Raina held things together and chipped in with vital runs along with the lower order.

He negotiated the threat of Saeed Ajmal effectively and added vital runs in the death overs to push India to a respectable total.

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Edited by Anuradha Santhanam