Top 5 blistering hundreds in 2016 in ODIs
The year 2016 has been an immensely entertaining one for the cricket lovers. With both bat and ball, there have been many superlative individual performances that enthralled spectators and steamrolled the opposition.
Quite a few records were broken and batsmen like David Warner, who amassed truckloads of runs, will end the year with their reputation enhanced significantly. More than 60 centuries were scored in ODI cricket in this year.
As the year draws to a close, let us take a look at the top five blistering hundreds in ODIs in 2016.
#1 Jos Buttler 105 (76) vs South Africa, Bloemfontein (Strike Rate – 138)
Joe Root may often win plaudits for being the most consistent batsman for England but it is the presence of Jos Buttler at no. 4 that intimidates the opposition the most in limited overs cricket. With his swashbuckling style of batting, Buttler can easily alter the course of a match in the span of a few overs.
Buttler strikes at a jaw-dropping rate of 120 runs per 100 hundred balls in ODIs, a rate which is considered very decent in T20 cricket as well.
In the ODI series against the Proteas early this year, England got off to a spectacular start thanks to Buttler's breathtaking century. In the first ODI at Bloemfontein, Buttler plundered 105 runs off just 76 balls and powered England to a mammoth 399. Right from the outset, Buttler displayed murderous intent and ripped the South African bowling attack to shreds. Such was his aggression that even the mighty Morne Morkel and the wily Imran Tahir were rendered ineffective.
That this is his slowest ODI century speaks volumes about the magnitude of havoc he can wreak on the bowlers. Buttler is yet to make an impact in Test cricket but his effectiveness in T20s and ODIs is beyond any doubt.