A Cricket World Cup, also known as the ODI World Cup is a multi-match tournament wherein plenty of top teams battle amongst themselves in a bid to win the title. It is important for the players to execute their roles properly and help the team whenever required.
As far as the batsmen are concerned, it is important to maintain a good batting average throughout the course of the tournament. In order to achieve the feat, it is important to chip in with long-term contributions throughout the competition. One must know that consistent performances from key batters can steer the team to success over the course of the tourney.
Let’s delve deep into the list of cricketers who have maintained the highest batting average in a World Cup tournament (minimum 500 runs).
1. Kumar Sangakkara
Former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara is the second-leading run-scorer in international cricket as he has piled up over 25,016 runs to his credit. Notably, the veteran is known for his consistency and potential to anchor the innings. He has scored four consecutive centuries in the 2015 World Cup tournament. Sangakkara comes first on the list as he has the highest batting average of 108.20 in the 2015 edition.
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2. Virat Kohli
Former Indian captain Virat Kohli is known for his tremendous chasing abilities and has been a pivotal run-scorer for India for several years now. It is worth noting that Kohli consistently ranks among the top run-scorers in World Cups. He unleashed the best version of himself in the 2023 ODI World Cup, in which he finished the tournament as the leading run-scorer with 711 runs with an average of 95.62.
3. Sachin Tendulkar
India’s batting maestro Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar ended up as the highest run-scorer in the 2003 World Cup as he scored 673 runs to his name, a record that remained intact for two decades before it was broken by Virat Kohli in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Sachin Tendulkar who played crucial innings in multiple editions comes third on the list as he has the third-highest batting average of 87.16 in the 1996 edition of the World Cup.
4. Shakib Al Hasan
Bangladesh national cricket team immensely benefitted from the services of Shakib Al Hasan as an all-rounder in international cricket. Moreover, he has been consistent with both bat and ball. In the 2019 World Cup, he scored 606 runs and was one of the tournament’s leading run-scorers. He maintained a batting average of 86.57 in the 2019 edition of the World Cup.
5. Kane Williamson
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson piled up 578 runs at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 tournament, which was more than any other captain at any World Cup before. However, it was later broken by Indian captain Rohit Sharma who scored 597 runs in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Kane maintained a batting average of 82.57 in the 2019 edition of the World Cup.
6. Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma holds the record for scoring the most centuries in a single edition of the World Cup. Notably, he scored five centuries in the 2019 World Cup, establishing himself as one of the premier ODI batters. He maintained a tremendous batting average of 81 and finished the tournament as the leading run-scorer with 648 runs. It is worth noting that he scored the most centuries in Cricket World Cup – 7.
