Flashback: The first man to play 100 ODIs
Former Australia skipper Allan Border holds the record for becoming the first-ever player to appear in the 100th one-day international match. The Aussie legend achieved the feat against Sri Lanka on January 19, 1985, in Melbourne in the Benson & Hedges World Series Cup.
Born on July 27, 1955, he was one of the greats of Australian cricket. Border made his ODI debut against arch-rivals England in Sydney in the year 1979. Six years later, he reached the landmark of a century of games in the format.
He featured in 273 matches for the Kangaroos and scored 6524 runs at an average of 30.62 and a strike rate of 71.42 with the highest score of 127*. The left-handed batter struck three centuries and 39 half-centuries in the ODI format. In 252 innings, he remained unbeaten 39 times in his career.
In 1987, nicknamed ‘AB’, Border also scripted history when he became the first-ever Australian captain to lead the side to World Cup glory. The team from down under defeated arch-rivals England by seven runs in a closely fought final at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
With that, he entered the history books for winning the first World Cup title for his country. He skippered the Aussies in 178 ODIs, winning 107 and losing 67. In Tests, he led the side in 93 matches, winning 32 and losing 22 while 38 encounters ended in a draw.
As a batter, he amassed 11174 runs in 156 Tests at a solid average of 50.56 with the highest score of 205. In 265 innings, he smashed 27 centuries and 63 half-centuries. Border’s last Test appearance came against South Africa in Durban in March 1994 while his last ODI came against the same opposition in Bloemfontein the following month.