Image Credit: twitter.com/@cricbuzz
The ICC Cricket World Cup has seen some standout performances over the years. There have been some minor but serious hiccups. The others, however, are significant and have been going on for a while. Currently, the World Cup record for the highest individual score belongs to New Zealander Martin Guptill. Martin tallied the second double century ever in a Cricket World Cup game. He scored 237 runs in an uninterrupted inning in only 163 balls. His innings, which included 24 boundaries and 11 sixes, produced 162 runs off just 35 balls.
| Runs | Player | Balls | Date |
| 237* | Martin Guptill | 163 | 21 March 2015 |
| 215 | Chris Gayle | 147 | 24 February 2015 |
| 188 | Gary Kirsten | 159 | 16 February 1996 |
| 183 | Sourav Ganguly | 158 | 26 May 1999 |
| 181 | Viv Richards | 125 | 13 October 1987 |
In Wellington, New Zealand and West Indies squared off in the tournament’s fourth quarterfinal. Guptill was dropped by Marlon Samuels in the first over at square leg, which was arguably the biggest error of the match. He started his innings the same way he had in every other ODI. Guptill, who has three double centuries in ODI cricket, reached his half-century at less than a run per delivery, similar to Rohit Sharma. His strike rate soared and never fell after that. Examining the acceleration can be done by counting how many balls he needs to score each set of 50 runs.
Advertisement
Advertisement
He reached the halfway point in 64 balls and needed 111 more to reach his hundred. From that moment on, he only dealt in borders. He struck his first ODI double century in 18 balls after reaching 150 in 134 deliveries. The home team scored 393/6 in 50 overs. The West Indian batsmen were up against a formidable but manageable battle. They were self-assured, and their run rate was respectable. They continued to lose wickets, though, and in the 31st over they were dismissed for 250. New Zealand advanced to the World Cup Semi-finals with a victory over England by a score of 143 runs
Of the 153 runs the Kiwis scored in the final 10 overs, Guptill alone hit 92 of them. While batting on 172, he passed Glenn Turner to become New Zealand’s highest individual scoring in the World Cup. After collecting 44 runs, he passed West Indian Chris Gayle, who had hit 215 just 25 days earlier. Because Guptill’s inning occurred in a key elimination game, it had a greater impact. The attack made it possible for the Kiwis to go to the semi-finals for a record-breaking seventh time, and they finally took part in the Finals.
Throughout his great innings, he played some of his well-known straight drives with little effort while also displaying tremendous power with his big sixes. He even smashed a six with the last ball to leave the stadium. It is difficult to overcome this score, and the added pressure of a World Cup game makes it even more difficult.
“Get more sports news, cricket news, and football updates, log on to sportsdigest.in. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter and Subscribe to our YouTube Channel.”
Advertisement
