Aaron Finch’s top 5 knocks in international cricket

Australia’s Aaron Finch bid farewell to international cricket after announcing his retirement from T20Is on Tuesday, February 7. The white-ball skipper will go down as one of the greatest shortest-format players to have represented the country with numerous accolades to his name. However, it was his leadership skills that handed Australia their maiden T20 World Cup title in 2021. Following his international retirement, we list some of his most memorable outings for the Aussies:

5. 148 against Scotland, 2013

When Australia squared off against Scotland for a one-off ODI at the Grange Cricket Club in Edinburgh, the Scots were put to the sword by Aaron Finch. The diminutive opener went on a rampage against the minnows scoring a sensational 148 off just 114 deliveries. He stitched together a mammoth stand of 246 runs for the first wicket. Along with opener Shaun Marsh, who registered a remarkable 151 himself, propelling Australia to a mammoth 362 runs.

4. 153* against Pakistan, 2019

Pakistan welcomes the Australians to the Sharjah Cricket Stadium for the second ODI of the series after losing the series opener against the visitors at the very same venue. The hosts batted first into the contest and managed a competitive score of 284 runs. However, the total was made to look ordinary by the Australian team. It was Finch who registered a swashbuckling 153 off just 143 deliveries.

3. 153 against Sri Lanka, 2019

Defending champions Australia took on Sri Lanka in the 20th match of the 2019 ICC World Cup at the Kennington Oval in London. The Aussies were put in to bat first by their Sri Lankan counterparts and got off to a solid start. However, a couple of quick wickets threatened to deflate the Australians. But it wasn’t to be as their skipper Finch stood tall for the side with his counter-attack. He smashed 153 off just 132 deliveries.

2. 156 against England, 2013

England resumed their historic rivalry against nemesis Australia when they hosted them in the first T20I of the series, at The Rose Bowl in Southampton. The contest’s early blow dealt David Warner a cheaply departure after he batted first as a visitor. However, his opening partner Finch was in a menacing mood, dispatching the English bowlers to all parts of the ground. The explosive opener notched up an astonishing 156 in just 63 deliveries to take Australia to 248 on the board.

1. 172 against Zimbabwe, 2018

The one-sided contest turned out to be the third meeting of the T20I series between Australia and Zimbabwe.. The Aussies, buoyed by their skipper Finch’s record-breaking innings, compiled 229 runs on the board. Out of those, 172 came off the bat of their skipper off just 76 deliveries, which remains the highest individual score in a T20I. 16 boundaries and 10 sixes ladened Finch’s jaw-dropping innings.