Opening the batting is perhaps a huge task for a batter. They have to lay a strong foundation for the team to put up a big score on the board.
And only bigger partnerships between the opening pair can bring that into reality. Some opening partners understood it well enough and built several century stands for the first wicket while negotiating the threat of the new white ball.
The article outlines the most prolific opening partnerships in One-Day International (ODI) cricket history, focusing primarily on the pairs with the highest number of century stands and total partnership runs.
Most 100 Partnerships by Opening Pairs in ODIs
| Pair | Innings | 100 Partnerships | Highest Partnership |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 136 | 21 | 258 |
| Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma (IND) | 115 | 18 | 210 |
| Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden (AUS) | 114 | 16 | 172 |
| Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes (WI) | 102 | 15 | 192* |
| Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy (ENG) | 50 | 14 | 174 |
| Aaron Finch, David Warner (AUS) | 80 | 12 | 258* |
| Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar (IND) | 93 | 12 | 182 |
| Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (SA) | 93 | 11 | 282* |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga (SL) | 71 | 9 | 282 |
| Herschelle Gibbs, Gary Kirsten (SA) | 66 | 9 | 235 |
Key Insights on Prolific Opening Partnerships in ODI Cricket History
Record-Breaking Century Stands and Aggregate Runs by Opening Pairs
Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar hold the record for the most hundred partnerships among opening pairs in ODI cricket, with 21 century stands from 136 innings.
This Indian pair also registered the most century partnerships (26) by any pair for any wicket in the ODI format.
The Ganguly-Tendulkar duo has racked up the most opening partnership runs in ODIs, scoring 6609 runs together. They are also the record holders of the overall partnership runs scored by any pair for any wicket in ODI.
The West Indies’ pair of Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes was the first to build more than 10 century partnerships in ODIs.
Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden forged the most fifty-or-more runs first-wicket partnerships in ODIs (45), followed closely by the Ganguly-Tendulkar pair with 44.
Highest and Most Frequent Double Century Partnerships
John Campbell and Shai Hope hold the record for the highest partnership by an opening pair in an ODI inning, slamming 365 runs together against Ireland in 2019.
Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga have stitched the most double century stands (three) for the opening wicket, all achieved against Asian opponents (Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India).
The specific Jayawardene-Tharanga double-century partnerships for the first wicket are:
- 202 vs Pakistan, Dambulla, 3 August 2009
- 215 vs Bangladesh, Mirpur, 8 January 2010
- 213 vs India, Kingston, 2 July 2013
Elite Batsmen with Multiple Century Partnership Combinations
Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, and Rohit Sharma have each featured in five or more hundred partnerships with three different partners.
Sachin Tendulkar’s century stand partners are:
- Sourav Ganguly (21)
- Virender Sehwag (12)
- Ajay Jadeja (5)
Virender Sehwag’s century stand partners are:
- Sachin Tendulkar (12)
- Sourav Ganguly (5)
- Gautam Gambhir (5)
Rohit Sharma’s century stand partners are:
- Shikhar Dhawan (18)
- Shubman Gill (7)
- KL Rahul (5)
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