Sanjay Bangar backs star India batter to break Rohit Sharma’s record for highest individual score in ODIs

Former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar has tipped Shubman Gill to surpass ODI captain Rohit Sharma’s record for the highest individual score in the format. Rohit set the milestone with a breathtaking 264 off 173 deliveries, studded with 33 fours and nine sixes, against Sri Lanka on November 13, 2014, at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

During his appearance on ‘The Great Indian Cricket Show’ on Doordarshan, Bangar was asked which player he believed could break Rohit’s long-standing record. The 52-year-old responded [as quoted by ANI]:

“Shubman Gill has also scored a double hundred in one-day cricket. So, he has tasted it. And if Shubman Gill plays 45-46 overs, I think he can break the record."

Since making his ODI debut in 2019, Shubman Gill has featured in 55 matches, amassing 2,775 runs at an impressive average of 59.04 and a strike rate of 99.56. His tally includes 15 half-centuries and eight centuries.

The 26-year-old already boasts a double hundred, with his career-best knock of 208 off 149 deliveries, which included 19 fours and nine sixes, coming against New Zealand in January 2023 at Hyderabad.

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“He hits sixes the same way” - Sanjay Bangar predicts player to shatter Yuvraj Singh’s 12-ball fifty record

In the same conversation, Sanjay Bangar also singled out Abhishek Sharma as a player capable of surpassing Yuvraj Singh’s record for the fastest fifty in T20Is among full-member nations. The former all-rounder had set the record by scoring a fifty in just 12 balls against England in the 2007 T20 World Cup. Backing Abhishek, Sanjay Bangar said:

"He's (Abhishek) his (Yuvraj) student. And he hits sixes in the same way."

Abhishek Sharma is currently the No. 1 ranked T20I batter and has featured in 24 matches in the format. He has scored 849 runs at an average of 36.91, with a strike rate of 196.07, including five fifties and two centuries. His best innings came earlier this year, when he smashed 135 off 54 balls against England at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.