ODIs just hit a milestone: 5,000 matches played. No other format in international cricket has reached this mark, not even the oldest one.
The 5,000th ODI happened in Scotland, shortly after the Commonwealth Games ended there. Scotland edged out Canada by 9 runs to claim the win.
ODI cricket started in 1971, which was a whopping 94 years after the very first Test match. While Test matches still haven’t crossed the 3,000-game mark, ODIs have raced ahead. Over the past 55 years, 29 countries have played ODIs. The idea of the World Cup came from this version of the game—and you probably know, India’s first World Cup victory came in this format too.
Let’s look at which teams and players have stood out:
1. The very first international cricket match was a Test, back in 1877. As of now, there have been 2,629 Test matches. T20Is came much later, starting in 2004.
2. India has played 1,081 ODIs and won 575 of them. Australia sits just behind in total matches played, but has the most wins: 619 out of 1,025 games. Pakistan isn’t far behind—they’ve played 1,002 games and clinched 529 victories.
3. At home, Australia (298 wins) and India (235) shine. But overseas, Pakistan takes the lead with 171 wins, just ahead of India’s 169.
4. When it comes to World Cups, Australia dominates. Out of 13 tournaments, they’ve claimed six, including the most recent in 2023. India and the West Indies have two titles each.
5. No one’s played more ODIs than Sachin Tendulkar—463 games. The list of top appearances features four Sri Lankans, three Pakistanis, two Indians, and one Australian.
6. Four Indians crack the top 10 in career ODI runs: Sachin (first), Kohli (second), Rohit Sharma (third), and Sourav Ganguly (fourth).
7. For centuries, Kohli leads with 54, followed by Sachin (49) and Rohit (34). Ricky Ponting is next with 30 centuries.
8. Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan holds the record for most ODI wickets—534 in 350 matches. Waqar Younis of Pakistan, though, has the most five-wicket hauls in an innings (13).
9. Ricky Ponting captained more ODI matches than anyone else—230 games, with 165 wins.
10. The highest individual score? Rohit Sharma’s 264 against Sri Lanka in 2014—no one else has scored three double centuries in ODIs. He also tops the sixes list with 369.
Sachin has racked up the most Player of the Match and Player of the Series awards. MS Dhoni leads with 123 stumpings—the best in ODI history.