India vs West Indies 2019: Rohit Sharma breaks the record for most runs by an opener in a calendar year
What's the story?
Rohit Sharma broke the record of scoring the most runs as an opening batsman in any calendar year during his 63-run knock in the final ODI against West Indies. Former Sri Lankan opener Sanath Jayasuriya previously held this record.
The background
Rohit Sharma was the most consistent batsman of the year 2019 as he ruled the bowlers in all the formats of the game. He had been India's biggest star in the 2019 World Cup while he also achieved success as an opener in Test cricket. Prior to India's 3rd ODI match against West Indies, Rohit was just 9 runs away from breaking Jayasuriya's 22-year-old record.
The heart of the matter
The Mumbai-born batsman played 28 ODI matches and 14 T20Is in this year where he amassed a combined total of 1,877 runs. He scored 7 hundreds in the 50 overs format while he had an average of 28.2 in the shortest form of the game.
Rohit even registered three hundreds in Test cricket this year. He ended 2019 with 2,442 runs to his name. Only Indian skipper Virat Kohli scored more runs than him in international cricket this year as the Delhi-born star took his tally to 2,455 runs with his 81-ball 85 at the Barabati Stadium last night.
The vice-captain's 63 runs laid the platform for Virat Kohli and co. to seal the deal for India as they won the match by 4 wickets and 8 balls to spare.
What's next?
This was India's final match of the decade as they will play their next series against Sri Lanka in 2020. Rohit Sharma will look to continue his form in the coming months to bolster India's chances in the T20 World Cup next year.