Sai Sudharsan slams his second consecutive ODI fifty: Key stats
Sai Sudharsan has been a solid performer in the 50-over format and he couldn't have asked for a better start after having been handed the Team India jersey. After smashing a solid 55* on his debut in the first ODI versus South Africa, the left-handed batter has smoked another fifty in the second ODI. Sudharsan scored 62 as India posted 211/10.
A composed knock on offer
Sudharsan opened the batting alongside Ruturaj Gaikwad and India were reduced to 46/2. The 22-year-old then shared a crucial 68-run stand alongside skipper KL Rahul. It wasn't easy there in the middle and Sudharsan showed a lot of character. He applied himself and stuck it through. Once the partnership was broken, India bit the dust. Sudharsan was dismissed by Lizaad Williams.
Sixth fifty in List A cricket for Sudharsan
Sudharsan's 62 in St George's Park, Gqeberha, was laced with seven fours and a six. He now has 117 runs from two ODI matches. Meanwhile, he has raced to 1,386 runs in List A cricket. This was his sixth fifty in the format (100s: 6).
Sudharsan scripted this unique record in the 1st ODI
In the first ODI, Sudharsan became the fourth Indian opener to score 50+ runs on ODI debut. As per Cricbuzz, Sudharsan joined Robin Uthappa (86 vs ENG, 2006), KL Rahul (100* vs ZIM, 2016) and Faiz Fazal (55* vs ZIM, 2016) on this list. Overall, Sudharsan became the 17th Indian to register 50+ runs on ODI debut.
Another unique record now in the 2nd ODI
Sudharsan is only the second Indian batter to score two fifties in the first two ODIs of their career. Sudharsan has now joined Navjot Singh Sidhu in this exclusive list; the latter scored four consecutive fifties in his first four ODI matches in 1987.