Calum MacLeod's uncanny ability to hit daddy hundreds
Hitting hundreds is tough unless your name is Virat Kohli. Hitting daddy hundreds in ODIs, meanwhile, is even tougher. Even the great Sachin Tendulkar hit only five 150+ scores in his illustrious 463-match ODI career. He shares the record for the most 150+ scores with Rohit Sharma (180 matches) and David Warner (106 matches).
Calum MacLeod, the Scotland middle-order batsman, has accomplished this feat thrice in his 51-match career. Only 12 players have amassed scores of 150+ in ODIs and only six have done it more than thrice. No other Associate player has done it more than once, making this feat all the more special.
MacLeod scored his third 150+ score, a match-winning 157 off just 146 balls in the opening day of the World Cup Qualifiers against Afghanistan. Chasing a target of 256 against Afghanistan, Scotland were struggling at 21-2, with openers Matthew Cross and Kyle Coetzer back in the hut cheaply. A collapse was on the cards. However, MacLeod had other ideas. He stitched a 208-run partnership with Richie Berrington (67) for the third wicket. Even though Berrington fell at 229, MacLeod powered on to an unbeaten 157. He hit 23 fours and one six during the stellar knock.
Rashid Khan, who made his captaincy debut, had a tough time against the right-handed batsman as MacLeod hit 49 off just 31 balls off the World No.1's bowling. No one has ever punished Rashid like that and for the first time in his career, he ended up with an economy rate of above 7.
MacLeod's first 150+ score came in the 2014 World Cup Qualifier when he scored 175 off just 141 deliveries against Canada. The 29-year-old hit 14 fours and five massive sixes in that innings.
Another instance came on October 6, 2017, in the ICC World Cricket League Championship. He made 154 off 163 balls against Papua New Guinea, including 15 fours and three sixes.
He has scored 1582 runs at an average of 35.95, including six hundreds and five fifties in his 49-innings career. Apart from mastering the art of scoring daddy hundreds, he is also a good chaser. In chases, he has scored 781 runs at an average of 52.06 in 19 matches, including three hundreds and four fifties.
He started his career as a medium-pace bowler and batted at No. 9 and No. 10 in his initial matches. After proving his credentials as a batsman, he moved up the order. At No. 3, he has an excellent record as he has amassed 802 runs at an average of 53.46, including four hundreds and two fifties.
Scotland will be looking to win the ongoing World Cup Qualifier as only two teams can qualify for the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales. It won't be an easy task as experienced teams like West Indies and Zimbabwe are also fighting for a World Cup spot. If they are to win the ongoing tournament, they need their No. 3 batsman, MacLeod, to continue his form.
Can he lead Scotland to the World Cup? We will have to wait and watch.