In the world of ODI cricket, where every swing of the bat and sprint between the wickets tells a thrilling story of skill and strategy, there are a few extraordinary players who shine brightly as batting stars.
Some of these amazing players have reached the milestone of 2,000 runs very quickly, becoming the fastest to do so in 50-overs international matches.
Let’s look at the five fastest batters who have reached over 2,000 ODI runs in the fewest innings
5. Rassie van der Dussen – 45 innings
Just like Shubman Gill, Rassie van der Dussen from South Africa started playing One Day International (ODI) matches in January 2019. Like Gill, he reached 2,000 runs during the 2023 World Cup in India.
In his first 45 games, he scored 2,008 runs, including five centuries and 12 times when he scored fifty runs or more. He usually plays as one of the first batters in South Africa’s team. It’s likely that he will reach more milestones of scoring 1,000 runs in a short time in the next few seasons.
4. Kevin Pietersen – 45 innings
Kevin Pietersen quickly scored 2,000 runs in one-day international cricket. He did it in just 45 games, faster than anyone else had done before. He started playing in November 2004 and reached this milestone in only two years and 144 days. Pietersen amazed people with his powerful batting, especially when he played against South Africa and Australia in 2005. Even though he stopped playing for England in one-day internationals in September 2013, his early performances made him a legend in the sport.
Babar Azam became a star in cricket shortly after he started playing One Day International (ODI) matches for Pakistan in 2015. He is known for his quick scoring, reaching 2,000 runs faster than most others, and he’s the fastest in the world to reach 5,000 runs, doing it in less than 100 matches.
Fans love watching Babar play because of his smooth cover drives and perfect timing. He’s also admired for his leadership skills, which have helped him become a respected player in ODI cricket.
2. Hashim Amla – 40 innings
For more than ten years, South African cricketer Hashim Amla was known for scoring lots of runs very quickly. He started playing One Day International (ODI) cricket in March 2008. He reached the milestone of scoring over 2,000 runs in just 40 games, which was a record. He achieved this during a match against India at St George’s Park in less than three years.
Even now, Amla holds records for being the fastest to reach 3,000, 4,000, 6,000, and 7,000 runs in ODI cricket. He retired from international cricket with more than 8,000 runs to his name. His last ODI match for South Africa was at the 2019 Cricket World Cup in England.
Shubman Gill broke many batting records in 2023, showing how well he’s doing in international cricket. He started playing One Day International (ODI) cricket in January 2019. In just 38 games, he scored 2,000 runs.
His great performance got him into India’s team for the 2023 World Cup. There, he scored fifty runs against Bangladesh and made strong starts against Pakistan and New Zealand. His 26 runs against New Zealand made him the fastest player ever to reach 2,000 ODI runs, beating Hashim Amla’s record.
In January 2023, he scored 208 runs in a single innings, and his double century in Hyderabad helped India beat New Zealand in a high-scoring match.