Ranking all eight ODI double hundreds

For forty years of ODI cricket, no player managed to score an ODI double hundred. Saeed Anwar and Charles Coventry famously came close, but both of their innings were ended at 194 (though Coventry remained not-out).

Then in 2010, rather poetically, Sachin Tendulkar became the first player to accomplish the feat as he conquered a world-class South African attack.

Since then (a sign of how ODI cricket has evolved over the years), there have been seven more double centuries, three of which have been scored by one man: Rohit Sharma.

So how do the eight ODI double hundreds rank based on the quality of their innings?

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#8 Rohit Sharma 208* vs Sri Lanka

Sharma started off slowly in this knock

Rohit Sharma’s third double century in December 2017 was arguably the least impressive of the lot as he conquered a quite tired, and honestly poor, Sri Lankan bowling attack.

Yet that does not make the knock any less incredible. Any double century should be appreciated as a rare and extraordinary event which it still is. In fact, the innings was special because of the fantastic manner in which Rohit Sharma accelerated.

Sharma started quite slowly, taking 65 balls to reach his first fifty. From that point onwards, the ‘Hitman’ began to accelerate as he started to take on Sri Lanka’s bowlers, especially the spinners. His second fifty was slightly quicker, as it came at a run a ball.

With only ten overs left in the innings, very few would have predicted a hundred more runs from even the most aggressive of batsmen. Sharma defied those expectations with some brilliant hitting, taking Sri Lanka’s bowlers to task. Nuwan Pradeep, who was smashed for 18 and 15 runs in his last two overs respectively, bore the brunt of the Indian vice-captain's wrath. In fact, Sharma’s second hundred came in an incredible 36 balls.

While Sharma’s knock was unique for its acceleration at the end, in the end, it came against a mediocre bowling attack that was very ordinary at the end of the innings. It was also the third slowest double hundred, coming at a strike-rate of 135.95.

#7 Fakhar Zaman 210* vs Zimbabwe

Fakhar Zaman became the first Pakistani to breach the 200-mark in ODIs

Fakhar Zaman’s abilities were evident in the Champions Trophy final against India, and he has bettered that effort since with this double hundred against Zimbabwe.

Coming up against a demoralized Zimbabwe side, Zaman started at a relatively mundane pace as his first fifty came in 51 balls.

Meanwhile, solidity at the other end (Imam Ul-Haq was progressing at a similarly steady pace) helped liberate Zaman. His second fifty was far quicker coming in 41 balls as Zaman reached his century.

From that point, the Pakistani batsman was unstoppable as he thrashed the Zimbabwean attack, especially their medium pace bowlers and spinners.

While Zaman’s innings was outstanding, the fact that it came against a very poor attack prevents it from being placed higher in these rankings.

#6 Rohit Sharma 209 vs Australia

Sharma launched an assault on the Aussies

The India vs Australia series in 2013 is still one of the most remarkable ODI series in recent times. In hindsight, the series was a harbinger of what was to come in one-day cricket for the next half-decade.

In the seven-match series, five innings saw scores over 350; making that total ‘par’ rather than extraordinary. Perhaps the most special batting performances in a series of remarkable innings was Sharma’s first double hundred (and the third double hundred in ODI history).

Very similarly to the earlier mentioned double hundred against Sri Lanka, Rohit started slowly in his innings against Australia as his first fifty took 71 balls and came at almost the halfway mark in the innings.

From that point onwards, Sharma decided to attack Australia’s spinners: Xavier Doherty and Glenn Maxwell. After that, there was no looking back as Sharma announced his arrival as one of the best ODI batsmen around.

Sharma was particularly spectacular in the last ten overs, as he hit 96 runs (which would be considered excellent for an entire team in that period) before finally being caught out in the last over.

It was one of the most scintillating displays in ODI history up to that point considering it came against a relatively stable bowling attack (though certainly not Australia’s first choice). Sharma also hit a remarkable 16 sixes in the innings, a record which still stands (though it has been tied since by AB De Villiers and Chris Gayle).

However, the innings can’t be ranked higher because it came on an extremely flat track - as proven by the second innings when Australian bowling all-rounder James Faulkner managed to smash his way to his first (and only) ODI hundred.

Moreover, Sharma’s innings came at the slowest pace of any ODI double-hundred.

#5 Virender Sehwag 219 vs West Indies

Sehwag was a man on a mission as he smashed his way to the highest ODI score ever by the 44th over

2011 was a year of two halves for Indian cricket. The first half saw India draw an away test series with South Africa before winning the World Cup.

Yet after that tournament, India’s ageing squad just started to collapse as they were thrashed by England in England. By December, India were on their way to another 4-0 series loss in Australia. However, there was one silver lining in India’s second half: Virender Sehwag’s double century.

In a rather nondescript ODI series between India and West Indies, the Men in Blue were leading 2-1 before going into the fourth ODI vs West Indies.

Sehwag was captain as MS Dhoni was resting before the Australian tour and he chose to bat after winning the toss.

Even the Najafgarh batsman could not have predicted what was going to happen next. Like most Indian innings in that era, the match started with Sehwag and fellow Delhi opener Gautam Gambhir going after the bowling.

By the 22nd over, India were already 170/0 as Sehwag and Gambhir both looked for their centuries. While Sehwag reached his hundred in that over, he also managed to run out Gautam Gambhir. From that point, Sehwag was a man on a mission as he smashed his way to (what was then) the highest ODI score ever by the 44th over.

Indeed almost all the double centuries on this list came in the last two overs. In fact, if Sehwag would not have gotten out in the 47th over, he could have pushed towards 250 and ranked higher on this list.

#4 Chris Gayle 215 vs Zimbabwe

Gayle had shown once and for all that he was a big game player

Throughout his career, Chris Gayle has been accused of not showing up when it really mattered. He made brilliant hundreds in domestic T20 leagues all over the world but struggled in the World T20.

He made two triple centuries in test cricket but never managed to replicate that consistently against great bowling attacks. He was a great ODI batsman, but his only World Cup hundred before 2015 was against Kenya.

However, in the 2015 World Cup, Gayle managed to dispel those concerns by playing an absolutely legendary ODI innings against Zimbabwe.

While he wasn’t exactly facing a world-class bowling attack, the pressure of a World Cup game makes this innings remarkable.

The first part of the innings was rather strange, as Gayle managed to get one of his slower centuries (in 105 balls) and even played a maiden against Zimbabwean part-timer Sikander Raza.

Even more worryingly, his partner at the other end Marlon Samuels struggled and took more than a hundred balls for his fifty.

Yet as soon as Gayle got to his century, it was pure mayhem. He deposited Tendai Panyangara’s short balls over the boundary on multiple occasions with thunderous pull shots. He also took on Zimbabwe’s medium-pacers Hamilton Masazadza and Elton Chigumbra with his trademark elevated straight drive.

However, special punishment was reserved for leg-spinner Tafadzwa Kamungozi who was smashed for 21 runs in one over - Kamungozi has not played since.

In the end, Samuels also got going and the duo finished with the highest partnership in ODI history. Gayle had shown once and for all that he was a big-game player.

#3 Rohit Sharma 264 vs Sri Lanka

Rohit Sharma's 264

264. Once upon a time (around a decade ago), 264 was a very good ODI score. In fact, it is still a serviceable total, especially in high-pressure games.

Yet in 2014, Rohit Sharma managed to achieve that individually - the type of remarkable record that will probably not be eclipsed for decades.

However, like his other two double centuries, Sharma started at a timid pace. In fact, there was the period between the 16th and 24th over, where Sharma did not hit a single boundary as he and Virat Kohli instead preferred to rotate the strike.

The Mumbai batsman’s fifty came at a pedestrian 72 balls - a strike rate for which he would have been criticized if he had gotten out.

But he didn’t get out, instead accelerating in a manner that cricket has very rarely seen. Nuwan Kulasekara's full balls were smashed across the park. The ‘mystery’ of Ajantha Mendis was fully unravelled for the final time as he was pelted by the unforgiving Sharma.

In fact, Sharma’s second, third, fourth and fifth 50s came in 28, 25, 26 and 15 balls.

By the end of his innings, Sharma had destroyed careers, cemented India’s psychological edge against Sri Lanka in ODIs and changed what we thought we knew about 50 over cricket - all in one inning.

Nonetheless, the rather mediocre quality of the attack and the meaningless nature of the game (a bilateral ODI series where many key players were rested) prevents this remarkable innings from topping the list.

#2 Sachin Tendulkar 200* vs South Africa

Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar throws

It was a sunny day in Christchurch when Sachin Tendulkar had a chance to achieve one of the few feats that he (or anyone for that matter) hadn’t accomplished in cricket: an ODI double century.

The Master Blaster had flicked, driven and pulled his way to 163* with five overs to go. At that point, his 36-year-old body finally gave in as a rib injury forced him to retire hurt, much to the chagrin of cricket fans everywhere. It seemed as if the injury had stopped Tendulkar from becoming the first man to score an ODI double hundred.

Yet once more, Tendulkar was there to prove his doubters wrong. In a series that pitted two of the best ODI teams (at the time) against each other, India was looking to take an insurmountable 2-0 lead in Gwalior.

Little did they know, that winning the game was going to feel like a small bonus to the history that was made on that day.

Right from the beginning of the innings, Tendulkar seemed like a man on a mission. His first fifty came in 37 balls - the quickest on this list.

The Little Master actually slowed down from that point onwards as he tried to build a partnership with Dinesh Karthik- his second fifty took 53 more balls. As soon as he reached his hundred, one could sense that his eye was on the double as he accelerated rapidly.

The finest fast bowler of his generation: Dale Steyn was made to feel like an ordinary medium pacer with figures of 10-0-89-0.

Meanwhile, Tendulkar helped end the careers of Charl Langevelt and Roelf Van der Merwe, who played a combined nine ODIs for South Africa after this game (Van der Merwe later migrated to the Netherlands for whom he still plays).

In fact, the Master Blaster could have made far more - having reached 196 with four overs to go.

However, cramps seemed to have gotten to the Little Master- because of which MS Dhoni dominated the strike with Tendulkar only facing five balls after that point. It was still enough for him to reach the first double century in ODI cricket history.

What made this innings so remarkable was the fact that it was not a typical ODI double century - Tendulkar only hit three sixes.

Instead, Tendulkar flayed South Africa’s brilliant bowling attack with classical batting, hitting 25 fours- only eclipsed by Sharma’s 264 since.

The 25 fours included seven lovely flicks, three classical leg glances, two industrious square drives, four beautiful elevated straight drives, one effective pull and of course, eight of the most beautiful cover drives you will ever see.

It was an ode to classical batting and one that won’t easily be forgotten, no matter how many double centuries are made.

#1 Martin Guptill 237* vs West Indies

Martin Guptill treated a World Cup quarter-final like the Hong Kong Super Sixes

There have been 42 World Cup knockout stage (quarter-finals, semifinals or final) matches since the first World Cup in 1975.

In those games, only 19 centuries have been scored. Many legends including Tendulkar (though he made four fifties), AB De Villiers, Sanath Jayasuriya, Rahul Dravid and Jacques Kallis failed to make a single one.

Yet on 21st March 2015, Martin Guptill treated a World Cup quarter-final like the Hong Kong Super Sixes.

New Zealand was coming against a West Indies bowling attack that wasn’t exactly brilliant but had managed to bowl out an average Pakistan side for 160 earlier in the tournament.

However, the Kiwis had finished top in their group and had inspired cricketing fans across the nation in the process. From the very beginning, Guptill exhibited that very spirit with a cut that went for four on the very first ball.

Yet, Guptill’s innings was almost over before it began. On his third ball, he flicked a full Jerome Taylor ball only for Marlon Samuels to drop the chance.

From that point onwards, Guptill slowed down as he made a mundane fifty in 64 balls. He continued to play a measured innings and reached his century after an additional 37 balls.

However with 15 overs to go, not many would have anticipated what was going to follow. Guptill took advantage of the batting powerplay as he smashed his way to 45 runs in the next 5 overs, perfectly setting himself up for the final 10 overs.

In that period, he bludgeoned his way to 92 more runs. While Tendulkar’s innings was aesthetically more impressive and Rohit’s was more colossal, Guptill’s performance under high pressure makes it the best ODI double century.

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