5 batters apart from Abhishek Sharma who have scored hundreds in international cricket on MS Dhoni's birthday on July 7
The date July 7 is a special one for the cricket fraternity, as it marks the birthday of the legendary former Indian keeper-batter and ex-captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The superstar from Jharkhand is celebrating his 43th birthday on Sunday. In the early hours of the day, he cut a special cake in the presence of wife Sakshi and Bollywood star Salman Khan to ring in his birthday.
Later, new Men in Blue opener Abhishek Sharma made the day even more special for Indian fans, cracking a brilliant hundred in the second T20I of the five-match series against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club. After being dismissed for a duck in his debut match on Saturday, the left-hander made up for it with a scintillating innings on Sunday.
After India had won the toss and decided to bat first, Abhishek clobbered seven fours and eight sixes in his 100, which came off 46 balls. He was dismissed immediately after reaching his hundred. In an amazing coincidence, the Men in Blue won the game by exactly 100 runs, with Abhishek deservedly being named the Player of the Match.
Th 23-year-old is, though, not the first batter to score a hundred in international cricket on July 7 - Dhoni's birthday. We take a look at five others who did so before him.
#1 Marcus Trescothick (104* off 134) - England vs Australia, July 7, 2005
Former England opener Marcus Trescothick scored an unbeaten 104 off 134 at Headingley in Leeds in the first one-dayer of the three-match series against Ashes rivals Australia on July 7, 2005. Trescothick's knock came in a thumping nine-wicket win.
Chasing a target of 220, England got home in 46 overs. Opener Trescothick struck eight fours and a six in his 197-minute knock. The left-handed batter added 101 for the opening wicket with Andrew Strauss (41 off 84) and an unbroken 120 for the second wicket with skipper Michael Vaughan (59* off 65).
Trescothick played 123 ODI for England, scoring 4335 runs at an average of 37.37 and a strike rate of 85.21, with 12 hundreds and 21 fifties. His international career, though, came to a premature end due to stress-related illness.
#2,3,4 Gavin Hamilton (119), Fraser Watts (101), Sandeep Jyoti (117) - Scotland vs Canada, July 7, 2009
As many as three batters scored tons in the first ODI of the two-match series between Scotland and Canada at the Mannofield Park in Aberdeen on July 7, 2009. Canada won the high-scoring game by six wickets, with eight balls in hand.
Canada won the toss and elected to field first. Scotland put up 286-4 as openers Gavin Hamilton and Fraser Watts hammered tons. The duo added 203 in 40 overs as skipper Hamilton struck 119 off 152, while Watts hit 101 off 108. Hamilton's knock featured three fours and a six, while Watts hit six fours and two maximums.
The tons, though, went in vain as Jyoti slammed 117 off 122 for Canada. His excellent knock included 10 fours and a six. Jyoti and skipper Ashish Bagai (92* off 111) added 146 for the fourth wicket. Bagai's knock featured eight fours as Canada got home in 48.4 overs, pulling off a memorable chase.
#5 Pathum Nissanka (104 off 113) - Sri Lanka vs West Indies, July 7, 2023
In an amazing coincidence, an opener hit a hundred in an international game in Harare on July 7 last year as well. Sri Lanka's Pathum Nissanka smashed 104 off 113 against the West Indies in the Super 6 round of an ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier match.
Nissanka's impressive innings ensured an eight-wicket triumph for the Lankans as they chased down a target of 244 in 44.2 overs. The right-handed batter hit 14 fours in his match-winning knock and featured in an opening stand of 190 with Dimuth Karunaratne, who slammed 83 off 92.
Nissanka's fine knock ended when he slog-swept Kevin Sinclair to deep midwicket. He had, however, more or less ensure victory for the Lankans. Karunaratne fell soon after, trapped lbw by Akeal Hosein.
Kusal Mendis (34* off 43) and Sadeera Samarawickrama (17* off 18) completed the good work started by Nissanka and Karunaratne.