Dhawan vs Kohli vs Sharma: Who is the best ODI player at home?

Rohit has the second-best average by any player at home in ODIs (minimum 10 matches played)

While opening, Rohit averages 85.36 at home, which is the best for India at home by an opener who has played a minimum of ten matches. Yet to play an ODI at home in 2015, Rohit will be itching to take on the South African attack on the grounds he favors so much.

Virat’s numbers are perhaps the most complete of the three. He has played enough matches at home to be properly quantified and has scored runs at a very consistent average of 55.29. His 24 scores of fifty or more in 58 matches – or 41.3% is much more impressive when taken into account that India have won 19 of those matches. Kohli also leads the charts in terms of number of centuries scored since 2008, but Hashim Amla is close behind him.

It must also be mentioned that India has never lost when Kohli has scored a century at home, and he will be anxious to keep it that way. Kohli will know that South Africa is the only test playing nation against whom he is yet to score an ODI century, and he will want to make that right as soon as possible.

ODI Average against each country at Home (Excluding Bangladesh as none have faced them in India)

Country	Shikhar Dhawan		Rohit Sharma		Virat Kohli
	Matches	Average	Matches	Average	Matches	Average
Australia	7	47.33	7	98.40	10	75.14
England	-	-	6	34.25	11	54.12
New Zealand	-	-	2	44.00	5	58.50
Pakistan	-	-	2	28.00	4	5.50
South Africa	-	-	1	48.00	4	29.66
Sri Lanka	3	94.33	2	136.50	10	69.00
West Indies	6	43.83	8	56.14	12	63.36

Shikhar’s ODI prowess has been limited by the fact that he has played in a period where India mostly toured other teams. He has only played against three teams at home in his career so far, but his performances against each of them have been very good.

He has scored a century against each team - 100 against Australia, 113 against Sri Lanka and 119 against West Indies, with strike rates of 90+ against all of them. Though Shikhar hasn’t played enough ODI games in India, he has a ton of experience playing overseas, and India will hope that he uses them to full effect while the touring South Africans clash against them in a high-stake ODI series.

Though Rohit has played against all the test playing nations at home, it is still too soon to make anything of those numbers. He has a 48.00 average against South Africa, but that is only after playing a single match. His best comes against Sri Lanka, but that again is only after two matches.

The only teams he has relatively faced the most are Australia and West Indies, against both of whom he has good averages. He has four half-centuries against West Indies in eight matches while has two half-centuries and a century - which later became a double-century – against Australia in seven matches.

Perhaps the biggest factor against Rohit is that he only has centuries against Australia and Sri Lanka and is yet to score any against all of the other teams. This can be attributed to the fact that he has not played enough against them, but it is still a point against him. His lowest averages come against England and Pakistan, and he has only scored 137 runs in 6 games against the former.

Once again, Virat’s numbers are well-rounded when compared to his teammates. Virat also has played against all test playing nations at home, but the biggest difference between him and Rohit is that Kohli has scored centuries against five of them. Indeed, it is the two teams against whom he has the worst average - Pakistan and New South Africa that he is yet to score an ODI century.

Virat’s averages against each team are off the charts, especially with a 75.14 against Australia, who are currently ranked Number 1 in ODIs. He also has an excellent 54.12 against England and 58.50 against New Zealand. To top it off, his second best average has been against fellow sub-continent team Sri Lanka, against whom he fares 69.00 in 10 matches at home.

Virat has a 50+ average against 5 out of the top 7 teams at home

The biggest blemish in Virat’s ODI stats is obvious - his performances against South Africa and Pakistan. While it can be partially attributed to him playing a low number of matches against them both, nothing justifies a player of his caliber to have an average of 5.50 against Pakistan.

Similarly, an average of just 29.66 against South Africa does no justice to his skills, and he will be anxious to set it right in the coming series. With a Pakistan tour to India unlikely in the coming years, Virat will have to wait a little longer before trying to improve his home record against them.

But even after all that’s been said and done, the real worth of a player can only be determined by how much they contribute towards a team winning. Let’s take a look at how many matches that India has won when each batsman has scored fifty runs or more: