5 players with most runs in List A cricket
The game of cricket is played in three formats officially - days format, limited-overs format, and T20.
List A cricket is the limited-overs (one-day) format of cricket. In a List A game, the overs' limit can range from 40 to 60 overs. List A cricket includes One-day Internationals (ODIs), limited-overs domestic games and international games involving nations who haven't attained official ODI status by the ICC.
Most cricket-playing nations have some form of List A cricket competition in their country. In India, Vijay Hazare tournament and Deodhar Trophy are the premier List A cricket tournaments. Similarly, Royal London One-day cup and JLT One-day cup are prevalent in England and Australia respectively.
Till date, only three players have managed to go beyond 20,000 runs in List A cricket. In this article, we will take a look at the top 5 leading runs scorers in List A history.
#5 Vivian Richards (16,995 runs)
Sir Isaac Alex Vivian Richards is one of the greatest of cricketers of all time. The first word that pops in our heads when you mention his name is - destruction.
Richards was born in Antigua, and as the Caribbean Islands participate collectively, he represented West Indies at the international level.
He was a hard-hitting batsman who was a real nightmare for bowlers. In the times of hostile bowling and with no head protection, he would swagger down to the middle to take on the bowlers with a simple cap and a piece of chewing gum in his mouth.
His hard-hitting strokeplay was the hallmark of his batting throughout his career. He was the first player to revolutionize batting in limited overs cricket. He scored an unbeaten 189 in an ODI against England in Manchester in 1984, which was the record for the highest individual score then, and was recognized as the greatest ODI innings of all time by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.
Richards scored 16,995 runs in List A cricket. His sky-high strike rate in international cricket (90+ in ODIs and 80+ in Tests), which was unprecedented in those times, is a testament of his greatness.