Rohit Sharma Sets New Record for Most Runs by Indian Opener

Rohit Sharma's Stellar Performance

On June 20, during the third and final ODI against Afghanistan at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium, renowned Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma scored an impressive 79 runs. He achieved this feat by hitting nine fours and three sixes off just 69 deliveries. In a remarkable display of batting, Rohit and Yashasvi Jaiswal formed a formidable opening partnership of 170 runs in just 22.5 overs, with Jaiswal contributing 110 runs off 86 balls. This performance allowed Rohit to break the record for the highest runs scored by an Indian opener in international cricket.

Record-Breaking Runs by Indian Openers

Rohit Sharma: 16137 Runs
Virender Sehwag: 16119 Runs
Sachin Tendulkar: 15335 Runs
Sunil Gavaskar: 12258 Runs
Shikhar Dhawan: 10867 Runs

Throughout his career, Sehwag played for the Asia XI and ICC XI alongside the Indian national team. The all-time record for the most runs by an opening batsman in international cricket is held by former Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya, who scored 19,298 runs in 563 innings across all formats.

Top International Run-Scorers as Openers

Sanath Jayasuriya: 19298 Runs
Chris Gayle: 18867 Runs
David Warner: 18744 Runs
Graeme Smith: 16950 Runs
Rohit Sharma: 16137 Runs

Rohit Sharma now ranks fifth on the all-time list for runs scored by openers, making him the only Indian in the top five. Since his international debut against Ireland on June 23, 2007, Rohit has accumulated 2,697 runs in 38 Test matches, 9,690 runs in 198 ODIs, and 3,750 runs in 125 T20Is as an opener. Among Indian players, only Sachin Tendulkar has more ODI runs while opening the innings.