Ten players who have scored a hat-trick of hundreds in ODIs 

In a game of cricket where patience is often needed along with tactics and a thorough understanding of the pitch, for a player to score a hundred is a brilliant achievement and it has happened countless number of times in the history.

However, to find the right rhythm and to score three-consecutive hundreds is a terrific feat that has has been achieved only ten-times in the history of the One-Day Internationals with 4062 games being played since the format's inception.

In the year of 2018 itself, this has happened twice making it ten players who form an elite list of being the only ones to have scored a hundred in three continuous games. Here are those players who've gone down in the history books for this reason:

#10 Zaheer Abbas

The older generation in both the countries of India and Pakistan will certainly not forget this name and it's a name that was etched in history during India's tour of Multan in 1983. Tilting the one-day international series heavily in their favour, the Pakistanis had a name to thank severely and that was Zaheer Abbas. His 118 in Multan resulted in a Pakistani win but his 105 in Lahore went in vain as India raised stakes to spice up the series. In the deciding fourth game, however, Zaheer Abbas' 113 in Karachi enabled a Pakistani victory as the nation went on to clinch the series. He became the first Pakistani to achieve this.

#9 Saeed Anwar

Saeed Anwar

In the Pepsi Champions trophy of Sharjah in 1993, Pakistanis had a hero amongst them as Saeed Anwar's sensational hundreds in three consecutive games propelled Pakistan to three-straight victories.

The Men in Green did lose the series but Anwar's 107 against Asian rivals Sri Lanka was followed up by a 131 against West Indies and this too was followed up by another knock of 111 against Sri-Lanka. He became the second Pakistani after Zaheer Abbas to reach this feat and it's one worthy of reminiscing.

#8 Herschelle Gibbs

He might be fourth in the list of South Africa's most prolific run-scorers but Gibbs was the first South-African batsman to achieve this excellent feat of scoring three consecutive hundreds. This happened sixteen years ago in the year of 2002 with him scoring 116 against Kenya in Colombo, a 116 again against India without getting out once again in Colombo and then a superb 153 against Bangladesh in South-Africa.

The Proteas with his help went on to beat Kenya and Bangladesh but lost the game to India. Gibbs is a legend of the game and his contributions time and again haven't gone unnoticed.

7) AB de Villiers

An absolute legend of the game, AB de Villiers, from the South African point of view took the Indian series by storm in 2010. In Gwalior and Ahmedabad, de Villiers scored 114 and 102 without getting out and even though the team lost in Gwalior, he was a major part as to why they won in Ahmedabad.

These two hundreds were followed up in the next series against West Indies where he scored 102 in Antigua to play a part in the South-African victory. His name echoes in the hearts of thousands across the globe and he is deserving enough to be on this list as he became the fourth player to score three-straight hundreds and the second South-African to do so.

#6 Quinton de Kock

Quinton de Kock joined the elite list along with two other South-Africans in the year of 2013 when he became the star attraction in South Africa as they played hosts against India.

His monumental 135 in Johannesburg and 106 in Durban helped South-Africa to get two consecutive victories and his 101 in the third ODI of that series went in vain as the game had to be stopped after the first innings due to conditions. In the limited career that he's had, this was one of the highlights of his career and there's no doubt that he produced his best for it.

#5 Ross Taylor

Ross Taylor is the only Kiwi on this list and this is just another shining ray on the legendary career that he's had as well.

In Hamilton and Wellington respectively, Ross Taylor's 112 not out and 102 elevated New Zealand to two straight victories against India but his third century in Dubai where he scored 105 went in vain against Pakistan as his team ended up on the losing side. He's achieved a lot in his career and has gone on to become the national captain and this record definitely tilts quite a praise in his favour.

#4 Kumar Sangakkara

On the platform of the ICC World Cup of 2015, this Sri-Lankan ace batsman produced this miracle and stole the show, also producing one of the best moments of the World Cup. His 105 against Bangladesh in Melbourne resulted in a victory for the lions and this was backed up by another 117 runs against England which resulted in a landslide Sri-Lankan victory.

His 104 against Australia in Sydney went in vain however as the Aussies triumphed in that game. It is also honourable to mention that Sangakkara added another hundred immediately after this, making it four continuous hundreds by scoring 124 vs Scotland. If the game of cricket ever comes up in that Island nation, Sangakkara is a name that will be taken by every citizen and he is deserving of such a fame and these records only boost his reputation.

#3 Babar Azam

Proving to the world that he is special talent indeed coming out of Pakistan, Babar Azam scored three consecutive hundreds against West Indies in the same series to etch his name beside Zaheer Abbas and Saeed Anwar to become the third Pakistani to have done this.

His 123 in the first ODI, 120 in the second and 117 in the third ODI propelled the men in green to 300-plus totals on all three occasions. Pakistan won all three games with him playing a part and Babar Azam's reputation rose instantly after this. He's one of the few to watch out for.

#2 Jonny Bairstow

Having been playing first-class cricket for Yorkshire and England, Jonny Bairstow became the first Englishman to get printed in the history books for scoring three straight ODI hundreds and it happened early this year, in March of 2018.

Two hundreds of his went in vain as England lost their game to New Zealand in Dunedin in spite of him scoring 138 and then they lost to Scotland in Edinburgh even though he scored 105. In the game between this however, in Christchurch, his 104 helped the English defeat the Kiwis. There's a promising career left for him and it will be seen if he kicks it to another level from here.

#1 Virat Kohli

Few would have thought that when he led the Under-19 Indian team, Virat Kohli would become such a reputed name in Indian cricket but the captain from Delhi is producing golden moments which the entire Indian nation is savouring at the moment. The latest, however, is becoming the first Indian batsman to score three consecutive hundreds, all of them coming in one series against West Indies in India.

His outstanding 140 in Guwahati resulted in a great victory for India but the other two centuries have gone in vain with his score 157 not out not converting into a victory as the Caribbean nation drew in Vishakapatnam. His latest 107 was a waste as India couldn't reach the target of 284 to prevent a West Indian victory. As an individual though, he is notching up new records and drawing several comparisons and if he goes at this rate, Virat Kohli will go down as one of the supreme legends of the game.