It was on this day in 2011 when former India opening batsman Virender Sehwag became only the second batsman in the history of the game to score a double century in One Day Internationals. The swashbuckling batsman, who was known for his fearless batting approach, scored a knock of 219 runs against West Indies at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore. The 41-year-old hit a record 41 fours and seven sixes which enabled India to post a score of 418/5 in their fifty overs. India then went on to win the match by 153 runs.
“#OnThisDay in 2011, Virender Sehwag smashed the second double century in men’s ODIs. His knock catapulted India to a total of 418/5 against West Indies. India won the game by 153 runs,” ICC tweeted.
“I was cheering for Sachin when he got his double-hundred and it’s great to emulate that and break his record. I’d love to come back to Madhya Pradesh. The crowd has been great and thanks to them for cheering every run …
“The pitch was great and allowed you to play your shots. I think you can only get a double-hundred when you’re experienced. The last time I played 47 overs I got 175, this time I got 200“, said Sehwag in the post-match presentation.
In his cricketing career, Sehwag played 251 ODIs and 104 Tests for India in which he scored 8,273 and 8,586 runs respectively. Among the many feats that he achieved in his career, Sehwag scored two triple hundreds for India in the longest format of the game and the score of 200 in ODI cricket has been registered just eight times. Sachin Tendulkar was the first cricketer to do that – against South Africa in 2008 at Gwalior.
Among other Indians to have achieved this feat is Rohit Sharma, not once but three times. He scored his first double ton against Australia in 2013, followed by Sri Lanka in 2014 and 2017. The 2014 one was also the highest individual score in ODIs as he scored 264 runs.
