The one question that arises during an ODI cricket World Cup up is,
Who holds the record for the most runs in a single World Cup tournament?
Sachin Tendulkar, the Indian batsman, has held this record for 16 years since he scored 673 runs in the 2003 World Cup.
The 673 runs scored by Sachin Tendulkar in 2003 included 11 centuries and 6 fifties to his name!
You can check my Infographic image on Sachin Tendulkar’s cricketing records to understand the dominance he carries in cricket records.
Now, let us look into the list of players who have scored the maximum runs in a single edition of the 50-overs World Cup.
Most Runs in a Single ODI World Cup
| PLAYERS | YEAR | RUNS | INNS | AVERAGE | 100/50 | HIGH SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 2023 | 765 | 11 | 95.62 | 3/6 | 117 |
| Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 2003 | 673 | 11 | 61.18 | 1/6 | 152 |
| Mathew Hayden (AUS) | 2007 | 659 | 10 | 73.22 | 3/1 | 158 |
| Rohit Sharma (IND) | 2019 | 648 | 9 | 81.00 | 5/1 | 140 |
| David Warner (AUS) | 2019 | 647 | 10 | 71. 89 | 3/3 | 166 |
| Shakib Al Hasan (BAN) | 2019 | 606 | 8 | 86.57 | 2/5 | 124 |
| Rohit Sharma (IND) | 2023 | 597 | 11 | 54.27 | 1/3 | 131 |
| Quinton de Kock (SA) | 2023 | 594 | 10 | 59.40 | 4/0 | 174 |
| Kane Williamson (NZ) | 2019 | 578 | 9 | 82.57 | 2/2 | 148 |
| Rachin Ravindra (NZ) | 2023 | 578 | 10 | 64.22 | 3/2 | 123* |
| Joe Root (ENG) | 2019 | 556 | 11 | 61.77 | 2/3 | 107 |
| Daryl Mitchell (NZ) | 2023 | 552 | 9 | 69.00 | 2/2 | 134 |
| Mahela Jayawardene (SL) | 2007 | 548 | 11 | 60.88 | 1/4 | 115* |
| Martin Guptill (NZ) | 2015 | 547 | 9 | 68.37 | 2/1 | 237* |
| Kumar Sangakkara (SL) | 2015 | 541 | 7 | 108.20 | 4/0 | 124 |
Highlights
Apart from this record, Sachin also holds the record for featuring in most ODI World Cup tournaments – 6 appearances between 1992-2011. He shares this feat with Javed Miandad of Pakistan.
Interestingly, most of these numbers in the above table have arrived from World Cups held after 2000, which makes Sachin’s tally of 523 in 1996 more special. In 1996, the conditions were relatively tougher and the bowlers were more dominant than in the 2000s.
Sachin’s 4 out of 5 50+ scores in the 1996 world cup came in his 1st 4 games.
Kumar Sangakkara, in 2015, managed an unbelievable streak of four consecutive centuries in a row, which is the only instance in ODI cricket. The record for the most centuries in a single ODI World Cup belongs to him from that year.
Mathew Hayden and Ricky Ponting in 2007 are the only 2 members on this list who have also ended as the Champions that same year.
Sachin in 2003, Jayawardene in 2007, Tillakaratne Dilshan in 2011 and Martin Guptill in 2015 contributions have taken their team to the runner’s pole in the above list.
Guptill’s 237* vs West Indies in 2015 is the highest individual score by a batsman in any ODI world cup.
