Opinion: Why Rohit Sharma can become the 2nd fastest batsman to score 10,000 runs

Two decades ago, not even one player in the then 26-year-old history of the One Day International format had come close to achieving 10,000 career runs. At one time it was unthinkable that a batsman would score 10,000 runs in one-day cricket.

March 31, 2001, was a historical day in ODI cricket. In the 3rd match against Australia in Indore, Sachin Tendulkar went where no man had gone before and created an exclusive club for himself. He became the first ever batsman to score 10,000 runs in the format.

Besides Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, Sourav Ganguly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Ricky Ponting, Kumara Sangakkara, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Jacques Kallis, Brian Lara, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Rahul Dravid are other cricketers to cross 10000 runs in the ODI format.

However, Virat Kohli became the fastest batsman to score 10,000 runs in One-Day Internationals. Kohli reached the mark in his 205th innings, while Tendulkar took 259 innings to complete the milestone. Another notable Indian cricketer besides Tendulkar and Kohli is former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Dhoni took 273 innings to reach the feat.

Rohit Sharma has played 185* ODIs & scored 7299* runs. To reach the 10,000-run landmark, he needs 2771 runs in 74 Innings and become 2nd fastest to 10,000 ODI Runs.

Rohit Sharma is not someone who can be taken lightly on the field. If given a second chance, he knows how to make the most of it. He has given many sleepless nights to his opposition bowlers, just by making the most of his opportunities. He is the only batsman in the Indian team who has played at all the positions and has done well.

The benchmark of reaching 10,000 runs should not be a tough task for him. He is just 31 years of age and has been playing some outstanding cricket in the limited overs format. The way he has batted in the last five years or so, makes me believe that he'll score these runs in no time. Not to forget he is not just scoring but scoring big hundreds.

With a healthy career average of 46.64 and a decent strike rate of over 85+ in ODIs, Rohit might complete this milestone within the next 3 years - by 2020.

Also, he is an opening batsman and because of that, he has an additional advantage of playing maximum overs and score maximum runs. Dhoni took a lot of time to reach from 9500 to 10,000, but Rohit might do it faster, simply because he has more balls to play infield restrictions or first 10 overs.

On an average, with all the international tours and tournaments, a decent batsman can score somewhere around 700–1000 runs in a calendar year; given the condition that he gets to play most matches in that year. Outstanding players score much more & Rohit Sharma falls in this outstanding category. He scores somewhere around 1000–1400 runs in a calendar year. In fact, in 2017, Rohit was the second highest run-getter in ODIs, with 1293 runs at a staggering average of over 71.

If all these past results are taken as the basis of calculations, then it is somewhat correct to say that Rohit will hit the 10,000 run-landmark within the next three years; somewhere around the end of 2020. He will be 34 by that time, and I think even at that age, he will have a lot to offer to the team.

All in all, Rohit will definitely score 10,000 DI runs. Give him some time and the 'Hitman' will make it a reality.