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In the game of cricket, captaincy is one of the most challenging roles. For a captain who is a batsman, it becomes imperative that he leads by example with the bat.
Some of the cricketers have crumbled under such pressure. While many turned into a better batsman with the additional responsibility on their shoulders.
Today, let’s have a look at the top five batsmen who registered the highest individual score while captaining their side:
5. Sir Vivian Richards
Captaining the West Indies side during the Reliance World Cup in 1987, Richards decimated Sri Lanka during his swashbuckling knock of 181 off just 125 deliveries.
West Indies posted a grand total of 360 at National Stadium in Karachi. Richards was accompanied by Desmond Haynes who also scored a ton in the match.
Strangely, Sri Lanka did not display any intent to chase down the total and utilized 50 overs, scoring just 169, with six wickets in hand. The Caribbean side won the match by a massive margin of 191 runs.
4. Sachin Tendulkar
Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar had his own struggles of concentrating on his batting while captaining India.
But before stepping down from captaincy, Sachin scored a mammoth 186* off just 150 deliveries against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1999.
Rahul Dravid ably supported him at the other end, who scored run-a-ball 153, as India posted a daunting total of 376 and won the match handsomely by 174 runs.
3. Sanath Jayasuriya
During the final of the Coca-Cola Champions Trophy in Sharjah, Sri Lanka scored 299 against India. 189 of them came from Sanath Jayasuriya’s bat, which helped the Lankans win the match by a comprehensive margin of 245 runs.
Chasing 300, India were bundled out for just 54 as they had no answer to Chaminda Vaas who ran through the formidable batting lineup.
This knock was the highest score by a batsman while captaining the side for a long period of time until Sehwag made the record his own in 2011.
2. Rohit Sharma
India’s double century machine, while captaining his side in the 2017 ODI series against Sri Lanka, scored his third double-ton in his career in the 50-over format.
The Indian opener scored a majestic 208* off 153 deliveries, where he smashed 13 boundaries and 12 sixes. The ‘Men in Blue’ posted a monumental 392 at Mohali, and ended up winning the match by 141 runs.
1. Virender Sehwag
The record for the highest individual score by a batsman while captaining the side belongs to Viru, who became the second batsman to score a double hundred in ODIs.
Sehwag scored a mammoth 219 off just 149 deliveries against West Indies in 2011 at the Holkar Stadium in Indore. During his epic knock, Sehwag smashed 25 boundaries and seven sixes, as India posted 418. India won the match by a massive margin of 153 runs.
