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Top five highest individual scores in ODI World Cup history

ODI Cricket World Cup 2023 which is to be held in India is building up excitement with each passing day. Individual performances have always been seen as a benchmark for players during the ODI World Cup. Kapil Dev’s 175 during the 1983 edition or unbeaten century by Aravinda De Silva in the 1996 finals are considered classic knocks.

In this list, we will take a look at the top five individual highest scores in the history of ODI World Cups.

#1. Martin Guptill – 237 versus West Indies -2015 World Cup – Wellington

New Zealand was co-hosting the 2015 World Cup along with Australia. It was a dazzling show by the Brendon McCullum-led side as they reached the finals. The Kiwis met two-time champions West Indies in the 4^th Quarter Finals, which was played at Wellington.

Martin Guptill took centre stage as he smashed West Indies all over the park. The right-handed batter scored the best score by a batter in World Cup history. Martin Guptill scored 237 not out off 163 balls with 24 fours and 11 sixes. New Zealand ended up 393 from their 50 overs and won the game by 143 runs to make it to the final four.

#2. Chris Gayle -215 versus Zimbabwe – 2015 World Cup – Canberra

The 15^th game of the 2015 ODI World Cup saw West Indies take on Zimbabwe at Canberra. After losing Dwayne Smith for a 2^nd ball duck, West Indies did not lose another wicket for the next 49.4 overs. The star with the bat was Chris Gayle as he scored 215 off 147 balls with 10 fours and 16 sixes. Gayle added 372 runs for the 2^nd wicket with Marlon Samuels to leave Zimbabwe completely in shambles. West Indies scored 372/2 from their 50 overs and won the game by 73 runs on the Duckworth and Lewis method.

#3. Gary Kirsten – 188 versus the United Arab Emirates – 1996 World Cup –Rawalpindi

Former India coach Gary Kirsten stole the headlines when he smashed the UAE bowlers all over the park. The left-handed opener scored 188 runs off 159 balls with 13 fours and 4 sixes. This helped South Africa score 321 and win the game by 169 runs as UAE could only score 152/8 from their 50 overs.

#4. Sourav Ganguly – 183 versus Sri Lanka -1999 World Cup – Taunton

Sri Lanka and India were both facing must must-win situation when they met on 26 May 1999 at Taunton. This was the same venue where Kapil Dev had scored his world-famous 175 not out. After the early loss of S. Ramesh, the Indian pair of Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid took over. The pair added 318 runs for the 2^nd wicket as both scored centuries and India scored 373.

Ganguly scored 183 to notch a new World Cup record and got his runs off 158 balls with 17 fours and 7 sixes. Rahul Dravid played well to score his then-career-best 145. Sri Lanka was bowled out for 216 with Robin Singh picking 5/31 as India won by 157 runs.

#5. Viv Richards -181 versus Sri Lanka -1987 World Cup – Karachi

Sri Lanka was battered by a red-hot West Indian team during the 1987 World Cup. The two-time champions had scored 360/4 from their 50 overs. The star of the show was Sir Vivian Richards. The right-hander scored 181 off 125 balls with 18 fours and 7 sixes. Desmond Haynes was the other century maker with 105 off 124 balls with 10 fours and a six. West Indies won the game by 191 runs as Sri Lanka could only score 169/4 from their 50 overs.