Ruturaj Gaikwad led from the front for Maharashtra in the final league stage game of the Vijay Hazare Trophy at the Dr Soni Stadium in Jaipur. He smashed an unbeaten 134 off 131 balls for his side and in the process, broke the world record after 20 years. Gaikwad now holds the highest average in the history of List A cricket. For the unversed, List A cricket covers all One-Day cricket, domestic and international, across the world.
The Maharashtra skipper has so far amassed 5050 runs in 95 innings in List A cricket at a stunning average of 58.72 with a staggering 20 centuries and 19 half-centuries. He has been extremely consistent in the format and even then, hasn't played many matches for India. In fact, he was dropped from the team for the upcoming New Zealand series, despite scoring a stunning century in the series against South Africa at home.
Bevan held the record of the highest average in List A cricket for a stunning 20 years. He averaged a 57.86 in the 50-over format in 385 innings, scoring 15103 runs during his illustrious career. It will be a test of character for Ruturaj to match his consistency over a longer period of time. However, for now, the man looks unstoppable in the format.
Highest average in List A cricket
Ruturaj Gaikwad - 58.72*
Michael Bevan - 57.86
Sam Hain - 57.76
Virat Kohli - 57.67
Ruturaj Gaikwad also completes 5000 runs in List A cricket
Ruturaj Gaikwad might not have got many chances in India's ODI team but he is doing his job perfectly in the domestic circuit, making it hard for the selectors to ignore him for long. He completed 5000 runs during his brilliant 134-run knock against Goa. On the back of his knock, Maharashtra managed to post 249 runs for the loss of seven wickets after 50 overs.
They were struggling at 25/5 and 52/6 at one stage, but Gaikwad made sure that they posted a competitive total on the board.
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