21st May 1997 was the day when Saeed Anwar walked out to bat in an Independence Day Cup fixture against arch-rivals India and the rest is history. Elegance personified, Saeed Anwar was easily the best ODI batsman at the time and he proved it with his epic 194, which stayed an ODI record for 13 years.
Runs ➞ 1️⃣9️⃣4️⃣
Balls ➞ 1️⃣4️⃣6️⃣
Fours ➞ 2️⃣2️⃣
Sixes ➞ 5️⃣#OnThisDay in 1997 against India, Saeed Anwar smashed the then highest individual score in ODIs 🔥 pic.twitter.com/y3HjEFE5xu
— ICC (@ICC) May 21, 2020
Saeed Anwar’s 194 bettered Sir Vivian Richards’ 189* against England in 1984 record as the highest individual score in ODI cricket. His record-breaking marathon is still considered one of the greatest ever limited-overs innings.
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He always looked a class apart when he played his strokes. His flamboyancy was hard to match for other cricketers around the globe as he went about his business. No other Pakistani batsman has made more ODI centuries than his 20, which speaks volumes about his class. Next in the list is Mohammad Yousaf who has 15 centuries to his name.
Without further ado, let’s relive the moment he registered his name in the record books:
#OnThisDay in 1997. One of the greatest ever ODI innings as the brilliant Saeed Anwar scored 194 against India in Chennai to help Pakistan to a 35-run win #Cricket pic.twitter.com/yt5IK03bPd
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) May 21, 2020
His 194 came off 146 balls as he smacked 22 fours and 5 sixes at a strike rate of 132.87. Thanks to his blistering batting, Pakistan posted 327/5 in 50 overs as India fell short by 35 runs despite Rahul Dravid’s maiden ODI ton. Saeed Anwar was adjudged the man of the match for his outstanding batting display.
Social media is currently flooded with talks of Saeed Anwar. As he trends on Twitter, let’s have a look at how people are remembering the living legend:
Saeed Anwar's 194 was a unicorn, in the realm of disbelief that only Lara's first world record could match.
— AZ (@azkhawaja) May 21, 2020
Love this old footage.. Saeed Anwar was such an elegant player https://t.co/JXPKgiUfSc
— Nasser Hussain (@nassercricket) May 21, 2020
My all time favourite player Saeed Anwar.
What was a match on this day 21st May against India. He scored 194. He was just thriller, entertainer, warrior. I am Lucky that saw this match and shouted on every four and six. #SaeedAnwar pic.twitter.com/cV1AT9a1LV— HKpirbhat (@HPirbhat) May 21, 2020
For me at one time, Saeed Anwar was the best odi batsman! Effortless https://t.co/QV2tq7Aeq0
— Hersh Lilaramani (@fplbaba) May 21, 2020
https://twitter.com/nibraz88cricket/status/1263380417261993984
𝑻𝒉𝒆 ODI record before all the records
📆 #OnThisDay 23 years ago, Saeed Anwar battered India in Chennai to smash the then highest individual score in ODIs
The record stood for 13 years 🙌 pic.twitter.com/KgtmprhKYX
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 21, 2020
Highest ODI away individual scores.
215 – Gayle v ZIM
210* – Zaman v ZIM
194 – Anwar v IND
189 – Sanath v IND
189* – Guptill v ENG
189* – Viv v ENG
188 – Kirsten v UAE21st May 1997 – Saeed Anwar smashed India in India to then world record highest ODI score (194). #Cricket.
— Daniel Alexander (@daniel86cricket) May 20, 2020
One of the best one-day innings of all time…Saeed Anwar at his magnificent best 🙏🇵🇰 https://t.co/Bzk11B4k2f
— Khatti Dakaar (@BhaloDewana) May 21, 2020
"Yes it was painful as an Indian fan but it was sheer joy to see how stylish he batted through his 194" most of the Indians fans,have told me like this to describe Saeed Anwar's Chennai marathon.
— Udit (@udit_buch) May 20, 2020
What are your thoughts on the story? Let us know in the comments.
