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Kane Williamson is the fastest New Zealand batter to score 4000 runs in ODIs. The former Kiwi skipper reached the milestone in only 96 innings. Williamson’s classy batting can only be overshadowed by his attitude on the field. It does not happen every day that a captain and his team lose the World Cup trophy because of boundary count. However, even after being on the wrong side of the controversial rule, Williamson took the defeat with a smile on his face in the 2019 World Cup. The top-order batter is already the greatest batsman from his country and by the time he hangs up his boots, Williamson might be one of the best-ever batters in the sport.
Before the heartbreak of the 2019 World Cup was the 2015 World Cup. Williamson scored 234 runs in the tournament in nine innings, but more importantly, he played one of the best knocks against Trans-Tasman rivals Australia. In his unbeaten knock of 45 runs, Williamson sealed a one-wicket win for his side with a six. Apart from the World Cup, the Kiwi batter scored three centuries in the year. The following year, Williamson scored four half-centuries and a ton before reaching the milestone of 4000 runs with an innocuous knock of 31 runs on Boxing Day.
Gordon Greenidge is the 10th fastest to 4000 runs in ODI. The legendary batter reached the milestone in 96 innings. Playing for the West Indies, the opening batter was one of the mainstays during the period when the two-time World Cup champions enjoyed most of their success. However, like other batters of their team barring Viv Richards, Greenidge was overshadowed by the performances of their fearsome bowling attack. Like most of his successors including Chris Gayle, Greenidge had an arsenal of powerful shots.
The short-pitch delivery which has been a nemesis for most of his contemporaries could not challenge the opening batter. Batting without a helmet, Greenidge was unfazed by short balls as he could play the square cut and the pull/hook shot with ease. However, if the bowler dared to land a full delivery they would be met with powerful drives on both sides of the wicket. Greenidge in 1987 in nine innings converted all three of his half-centuries into tons. In the following year, the West Indies’ batter reached the milestone with a knock of 21 runs against England.
Shikhar Dhawan is the 9th fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The left-handed Indian opener reached the milestone in 95 innings. Dhawan is a regular feature on the list of the fastest runs in ODI cricket. The Delhi-born batter retired as one of the best white-ball batters of his generation. However, Dhawan in spite of his skills in the World Cups was overshadowed by the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. In 2016, the opening batter played only five ODIs and scored 287 runs. He backed his consistency from 2016 in the following year over a larger sample size of matches.
Dhawan’s ability to perform under pressure in ICC events was shown in the 2017 Champions Trophy. He started the tournament with a half-century over arch-rivals Pakistan. Against Sri Lanka in the following match, Dhawan made a century. In his third match of the tournament, the opening batter made another half-century against South Africa. In tours to Sri Lanka and the West Indies after the Champions Trophy Dhawan scored two half-centuries and a century. The home season at the end of the year resulted in two more half-centuries. An unbeaten century against Sri Lanka during the last game of the year saw Dhawan reach the milestone of 4000 runs in ODIs.
Quinton de Kock is the 8th fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. He is the second-fastest South African to reach the milestone after Hashim Amla. The wicketkeeper batter scored 4000 runs in ODIs in 94 innings. The left-handed batter is one of the finest batters to have played for the Proteas. He was a success in ODIs from his very first year in the format. The South African batter struck three centuries in a row in 2013 against India and held the joint record for a while before it was overtaken by Kumar Sangakkara. Unlike his successors, Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla at the top of the order, De Kock is skinny-built. But that does not stop him from hitting his fair share of boundaries.
The left-handed is particularly dangerous against fast bowlers and has an overall career strike rate of 96.64 in the format. Both 2016 and 2017 were successful years for the South African at the top of the order. He made 1,813 runs in the two years at an average of almost 55. However, De Kock had a lean 2018 where he failed to convert his starts into centuries. He reached the milestone in the same year with a knock of 23 runs against Sri Lanka in a losing cause.
David Warner is infamously remembered for being one of the schemers behind the sandpaper gate. However, there is no denying the fact that the former Australian has done enough on the field to be remembered as one of the best openers to play all three formats of cricket. Warner was nicknamed, the Bull for his aggressive antics on the field. With the bat in hand, the former opener was nothing if not aggressive irrespective of the format he was playing. The left-handed batter would be responsible for providing some great starts to the Australian middle order. In the powerplay, Warner would use his timing and range of shots to score on both sides of the wicket. Thanks to his vast experience of playing in the IPL, the left-handed opener was adept at not only playing spin but also scoring quickly against them.
Warner in 2016 was an unstoppable force and he showed his class by scoring 1,388 runs in the year including seven centuries and his second-highest individual score of 173. The opening batter continued his impressive form in 2017. In a home ODI series against Pakistan, Warner hit two consecutive centuries the latter was his highest individual score of 179. Shortly after in the Champions Trophy, the Australian batter reached the milestone of 4000 runs with an unbeaten knock of 40 runs.
Virat Kohli is the 6th fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The Indian batter scored 4000 runs in the format in 93 innings. The name, Virat Kohli will remain synonymous with ODI records. The Indian batter in his career has gone on to reach new heights, especially in the ODIs. Virat is the fastest to 9000 runs in ODIs. The Indian number three holds other unbreakable records such as scoring the most centuries in the format. Kohli since finding his foot in ODIs has been on a rampage in the format. The Indian number three from 2011 to 2014 recorded four 1000+ runs in a calendar year.
In 2011, Kohli made 1,381 runs in 34 matches and won the ODI World Cup with a crucial knock in the final. In the following year, the former Indian skipper made 1,026 runs including a career-best score of 183 runs. His knock of 183 and 133* in 2012 made Kohli the Chase Master. In 2013, Kohli completed his journey to 4000 runs in ODI cricket an unbeaten knock of 77 runs while chasing a harmless total of 156 runs.
Joe Root is the third member of the iconic Fab Four to appear on the list of the fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The English top-order reached the landmark in 91 innings. Root’s impressive career in 50 overs is overshadowed by his record-breaking test career where he is currently in a great position to challenge Sachin Tendulkar’s mountain of test runs. Root is one of the perfect blended players in the modern day. He has the defiance and patience of the old school and yet can play multiple unorthodox shots if needed. This is one of the biggest reasons behind his success in the format.
Calling Root an instant success in ODIs would be an understatement. In his first seven years in the format, the Yorkshire batter made more than 5,800 runs and did not score less than 600 runs even once. During this period, Root averaged more than 51. In 2017, the former skipper had his best year. In 19 matches, the right-handed batter made 983 runs at an average of more than 70. He made two centuries and seven half-centuries in the year. Root with an unbeaten knock of 46 runs reached 4000 runs in the format.
Shai Hope is the 4th fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket reaching there in 88 innings. He has been the best batter from the current West Indies generation. The limited number of matches the West Indies play has meant that Hope has not played ODIs regularly. However, when given a series of matches to play, the wicketkeeper batter brings out his consistency who is often unmatched by players from both sides. Even when he was playing in the domestic circuit a young Hope had the backing of former legends and was touted to be one of the best.
In ODIs, Hope had a decent start to his with 600 runs in 2017, 875 runs in 2018, and a mammoth 1,345 runs in 2019. However, with the Covid pandemic around the ODI matches got limited. He started 2022 on a positive note with a half-century against Ireland and a ton against the Netherlands. He saved his best for a trip to Pakistan where in the first match at the Multan Cricket Stadium, Hope made 127 runs. Unfortunately, the West Indies lost the match in the last over, but the match remained special for the opening batter as he matched Viv Richards' record to score 4000 runs.
Viv Richards is the 3rd fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The former legendary batter took 88 innings to reach the landmark. Richards when he retired had the most runs in ODI format. Still, many modern-day experts will tell you how it was a career that could have reached different heights had he played a few years later. The batter from Antigua played in a fashion that was not popular during his generation. He still found immense success was a different story altogether. Multiple interviews from players of Richards’ generation tell you how his presence at the crease would create a sense of fear among the opposition.
The West Indies cricket team of the 1970s and 1980s was as dominating across test cricket and ODIs as any other team has been. While they only have two World Cups to show for it is disappointing. Richards had his best year in 1985 where he scored 1,231 runs and was the second-highest run-scorer in the year only behind teammate Desmond Haynes by one run. Richards only scored a single century in the year, but he had 12 half-centuries to his name and remained a consistent performer. His 51 runs against New Zealand were enough to reach the landmark.
Babar Azam is the 2nd fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The Pakistani batter only took 82 innings to reach the milestone. He is one of the best batters in modern times. In spite of all the controversy surrounding Azam’s captaincy and strike rates, he has been the mainstay of Pakistan’s batting for almost a decade. In 2016, the right-handed batter sealed his spot with three consecutive centuries against the West Indies. He followed it up with strong performances in 2017 and 2018.
However, it was in 2019, when Babar added another layer to his game. He showed that he had what it took to perform under pressure. With 474 runs, the right-handed batter was the highest run-scorer for Pakistan in the ODI World Cup. In 2020 and 2021 due to the Pandemic, Babar only played nine games. In those nine games, the 30-year-old made 626 runs including three centuries. A half-century against Australia in the first game of the following year saw Azam overtake Viv Richards and become the second-fastest to score 4000 runs in ODIs.
Hashim Amla is the fastest to 4000 runs in ODI cricket. While his record was on the brink of being matched by Babar, Amla’s record of fastest to score 3000 runs in ODIs is absolutely safe. The former South African batter scored 4000 runs in only 81 innings. Amla was consistent across tests and ODIs. While the South Africans did not win a single World Cup, during Amla’s time they had one of the best teams in the two formats. His solidity at the top of the order could not be matched by anyone else. From 2010 to 2015, Amla had an incredible run of scores in ODIs.
The period was bookended by two 1000+ run years. In 2012, Amla scored 678 runs in only nine innings. During the year he made two centuries and four fifties. He followed it up with 838 runs in 2013 and was the second-highest run-scorer for the Proteas in the ICC Champions Trophy. Later that year, when India toured South Africa, Amla made a half-century in the first game and followed it up with a century in the next game reaching the landmark of 4000 runs in 81 innings.
Virat Kohli is the fastest Indian to score 4000 runs in ODI cricket. The right-handed batter reached the landmark in only 93 innings. He is followed by his state teammate on the list, Shikhar Dhawan. Dhawan took 95 innings to reach the milestone. Sourav Ganguly is placed third on the list having scored 4000 runs in 105 innings.
The list also features legendary batters including the likes of Navjot Singh Sidhu, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, and Rahul Dravid. Interestingly, Gambhir, the current Indian head coach reached the landmark with the most important knock of his career. His knock of 97 runs in the final of the ODI World Cup was the innings when the former left-handed batter reached the milestone.
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