A century in any format is one of the tougher jobs in cricket. Players practice day in and day out honing their skills to scale to the highest level. While scoring a century is one of the biggest joys for a batsman, it’s even more convincing if it helps the team win games of cricket. However, not every ODI century scored fetches the desired result.
Here’s a look at 5 Indians who scored most centuries in ODIs in a losing cause:
1. Sachin Tendulkar – 14
Sachin Tendulkar represented India in an unbelievable 463 ODI matches across two decades. While his consistency helped him prolong his career for such a long period, his batting efforts most often brought glory for team India. However, 14 out of his 49 centuries in ODIs came in a losing cause for India. The master at work couldn’t help his team emerge triumph on those 14 occasions in his entire career.
2. Virat Kohli – 7:
Indian skipper Virat Kohli is competing with himself as far as ODI cricket is concerned. His numbers in the limited-overs format are unparalleled. In 248 ODIs for India, Kohli has scored a staggering – 43 centuries at an insane average nearing 60. While he continues to better his performances each day, seven out of his 43 ODI tons have arrived in a losing cause for India.
3. Rohit Sharma – 7:
Rohit Sharma’s ODI career has seen a major improvement in recent years. In the last five years, Rohit ODI stats are second to none. He’s been a pillar for India at the top of the order and continues to churn out runs on a regular basis. In 224 ODIs so far, Sharma has scored a total of 29 centuries with a personal best of 264 vs Sri Lanka in 2014. While his centuries mean success for India, on seven occasions, even the Hitman has failed to take his team over the line. His only ODI century in a losing cause in the World Cup last year came against England at Edgbaston.
4. Shikhar Dhawan – 4:
Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan has been a consistent performer for India in ODIs. His pairing along with Rohit has been a huge strength for India over the last five years. In 136 ODIs, the Southpaw has mustered over 5000 runs including a total of 17 centuries. Out of his 17 ODI tons, four have arrived in a losing cause for his team. Going ahead, Dhawan would hope that his runs bring glory for his team rather than ending up on a losing side.
5. Rahul Dravid – 4:
Former India skipper, Rahul Dravid was one of the most underrated ODI players in the Indian team. While his Test exploits always overshadowed his ODI stats, Dravid still scored over 10k runs in white-ball cricket. In 344 ODIs for India, Dravid batted on various positions from top-order to batting in the lower order as a wicket-keeper. He scored a total of 12 ODI hundreds including four that came in a losing cause for India.
