What were Sachin Tendulkar’s scores en route to his 673-run tally in the 2003 World Cup?
Legendary Indian batter Sachin Tendulkar's elusive two-decade-long record for the most runs scored in a single ODI World Cup edition has finally been breached. Virat Kohli overtook the former cricketer during his splendid knock against New Zealand in the 2023 ODI World Cup semi-final at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.
Tendulkar had amassed 673 runs in Team India's campaign at the 2003 ODI World Cup in South Africa at an average of 61.18 and a strike rate of 89.26. He managed six fifties and a hundred as the Men in Blue finished as runners-up.
Tendulkar kick-started his campaign with a fifty against the Netherlands. He scored 52 runs off 72 deliveries and was the top scorer as India were bowled out for just 204.
He was the top scorer for the side yet again, but could only score 36 runs off 59 deliveries as India were bowled out for 124 runs against Australia.
The right-handed batter compiled a solid 81-run knock off 91 deliveries in the side's win over Zimbabwe. He notched his highest score in World Cups, with a dominant 152-run knock off 151 deliveries against Namibia.
In the team's famous win over England at Durban, Sachin Tendulkar scored 50 runs, which included the iconic six over square leg off Andrew Caddick. His imperious form continued with arguably one of his best ODI knocks.
Tendulkar took on the iconic Pakistani pace trio of Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, and Wasim Akram to score a blistering 98 runs off 75 deliveries to help India chase down the 274-run target. He endured a rare failure after being dismissed for just five runs in the team's win over Kenya.
He narrowly missed out on a ton yet again in the clash against Sri Lanka. Tendulkar scored 97 runs off 120 deliveries and finished the Super Six stage with a 12-run knock against New Zealand.
Sachin Tendulkar scored 83 and 4 in the knockout stages of the 2003 World Cup
Sachin Tendulkar stepped up in the semi-final encounter against Kenya, chipping in with 83 runs off 101 deliveries to breach the 600-run mark for the tournament.
The legendary batter, however, recorded the lowest score of his campaign during the all-important final encounter against Australia. Fazed by a daunting 360-run target, Tendulkar fell to Glenn McGrath in the first over of the innings after scoring just four runs.
Even though Sachin's record has been toppled, his iconic 2003 campaign will always be fondly remembered by Indian fans, because of what it represented.