South Africa’s Matthew Breetzke smashes his own world record just one inning later, becomes first in ODI history to…
Breetzke, who returned to the ODI line-up for the second game at the Lord's Cricket Ground after missing the opener in Leeds on Tuesday, notched up his fifth straight fifty-plus score since making his debut in the format against New Zealand in Lahore, during the tri-series in Pakistan earlier this year. Having smashed 150 in his first appearance, he followed it up with scores of 83 against Pakistan, and 57 and 88 against Australia.ALSO READ: Captain’s favourites got chances: Senior India star hints at 'frustrating' selection bias after retirementThe last score, which came two weeks back at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay, saw the No. 4 batter break Sidhu's long-standing streak. The former Indian had struck four straight half-centuries at the 1987 World Cup but came in five matches.On Thursday, Breetzke clobbered seven boundaries and three sixes to notch up 85 off 77 - his fifth consecutive fifty-plus knock since debut - making him the first ever batter in 54 years of ODI cricket history to achieve the feat. The streak left him with 463 runs since his debut, the most by a batter after the first five ODI innings.What sets apart Breetzke's streak is that it all came in his first five appearances in ODI cricket, although players before have scored five fifty-plus scores in a row. Four of them are from South Africa - Jonty Rhodes (2000-01), Quinton de Kock (2017), Quinton de Kock (2019) and Heinrich Klaasen (2024-25).En route to the knock, the highest ODI score by a South African at Lord's, surpassing Herschelle Gibbs' 74 runs in 2008, Breetzke also stitched a 147-run stand alongside Tristan Stubbs for the fifth wicket, which is the third-highest partnership in ODI cricket for the Proteas for fourth wicket or below, standing behind H Amla and AB de Villiers' unbeaten 172 in Nottingham, 2012 and Marco Jansen and Klaasen's 151 in Wankhede, in the 2023 World Cup.
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