T20 World Cup, 35 days to go: Top moments- Suresh Raina becomes first Indian to hit T20I century
This was the first time an Indian batsman achieved a century in international cricket's shortest format.
On September 5, Suresh Raina, one of India's greatest-ever middle-order batsman, announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. Raina was popularly known as Mr. IPL because to his outstanding statistics in the cash-rich competition.
Raina was a sporting pioneer for India in the T20 format. He scored 1,605 runs in 78 T20Is, batting with a strike rate of 134.9. He delivered some great hits for the Men in Blue. In T20Is his most memorable innings, though, came in the T20 World Cup against South Africa in 2010.
India batted first in the game's first innings on the West Indian island of St Lucia. They got off to the worst possible start, losing Murali Vijay on the second ball of the game. Dinesh Karthik also exited at the score of 32.
Suresh Raina then took command of the innings, keeping up a steady partnership with Yuvraj Singh for the third wicket, putting up an 88-run stand until the latter was caught on 37. Raina batted until the very end of the innings before being caught on the fourth ball of the 19th over.
Suresh Raina went on to score a huge 101 off 60 deliveries, with 9 fours and 5 sixes and a strike rate of 168.33. This was the first time an Indian batsman achieved a century in international cricket's shortest format. In the T20 World Cup, no other Indian batsman has hit the three-figure milestone.
On the foundation of Raina's innings, India went on to score 185/5 in 20 overs, winning by 14 runs.
READ| India T20 World Cup squad: No place for Deepak Chahar, Shami in Ashish Nehra's 15-man squad