Gautam Gambhir: The man of big matches

Gautam Gambhir (Pic: AFP)

On April 11, 2003, India got one of its most reliable and complete batsmen in the form of Gautam Gambhir. He is known for his stunning performances in all the big matches. Gambhir was also a part of India's 2011 World Cup-winning squad.

During the 2011 World Cup final, India lost the early wicket of their opening batsman Virender Sehwag for zero runs. Gautam Gambhir was the man who came to bat in at number three and stood strong with Sachin Tendulkar. Later, Lasith Malinga silenced the whole Wankhede Stadium by dismissing Tendulkar for 18 runs. Despite the early loss of wickets, Gambhir did not give up on his hopes of winning the World Cup. He continued bashing the Lankan bowlers for boundaries. The left-hander missed his well-deserved century by just three runs.

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MS Dhoni smashed the winning six for India, but the contribution of the man with mud on his jersey can't be ignored. That day, Gambhir contributed to the team's win by playing a knock of 97 runs including 9 fours.

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Gautam Gambhir's unique records

The left-hander also has other great records which are next to impossible to achieve.

11 consecutive 50s in Test

Gautam Gambhir is the only batsman after West Indies legend Sir Vivian Richards to achieve this milestone. In 2010, Gambhir became the second batsman in cricketing history to score 11 consecutive 50s in the longest format of the game. He was also the only batsman to score 300+ runs in four back-to-back Test series.

Only Indian batsman to score five consecutive Test centuries

Gautam Gambhir also has his name registered in the elite list of players to score five back-to-back centuries in tests. He scored two centuries against New Zealand, two against Sri Lanka and one century against Bangladesh. Previously, Sir Donald Bradman, Jaqcue Kallis and Mohammad Yousuf achieved the same feat.

Most runs scored by India's opening pair in Test cricket

The aggressive pair of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag is undoubtedly the most successful in Test cricket for India. The left-hander has scored 4,154 runs in 58 test matches played. The 'Sehwag-Gambhir' pair has registered11 century run stands in Test cricket which is the most by any Indian opening pair.

Gautam Gambhir is truly one of the most complete batsmen to represent India in world cricket.