West Indies captain Shai Hope scored his 20th ODI century against India, surpassing Brian Lara's record. Following this milestone, an old clip resurfaced revealing how invaluable advice from MS Dhoni transformed Hope's batting approach. Hope has become a dependable anchor for the West Indies, amassing over 6,400 runs in his ODI career.
The West Indies captain Shai Hope put up a brilliant performance in the second ODI of the three-match series against Team India at Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday, September 30.
Hope played a brilliant captain’s knock of 104 off 94 balls, including 8 fours and 3 sixes, at a strike rate of 110.64, and formed a crucial 182-run partnership for the second wicket with John Campbell (101) to help the West Indies post a solid total of 405/7 and set an imposing 406-run target for India to chase.
This was Shai Hope’s 20th ODI century, making him the second West Indies batter after Chris Gayle to score 20 or more centuries in the 50-over format at the international level, and placing him alongside the all-time greats of Caribbean batting royalty as he continues to lead his side from the very front.
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MS Dhoni’s, Golden Advice to Shai Hope Goes Viral
As Shai Hope notched up his 20th ODI century, going past the legendary West Indies batter Brian Lara’s tally of 19 centuries in the format, social media erupted with resurfaced clips of the Caribbean skipper revealing how a priceless conversation with MS Dhoni reshaped his batting blueprint.
Back in 2023, following his 16th ODI century against England in Antigua, Shai Hope revealed a golden piece of advice from the former India captain that has ‘stuck’ with him through every tough phase of his career.
“A very, very famous person, MS Dhoni - we had a chat a while ago, and he was saying, 'You always have a lot more time than you think,'” Hope said.
“That's one thing that has stuck with me throughout the years I've been playing ODI cricket,” he added.
MS Dhoni is not only a legendary captain or wicketkeeper-batter but is also known for his uncanny ability to master run chases under pressure, a trait that Shai Hope has so brilliantly channeled to become the undisputed heartbeat of the West Indies batting order.
Dhoni also acts as an ‘unofficial’ mentor to the players he comes across during the IPL and international tours, sharing his wealth of cricketing intellect with modern stars who view him as the ultimate blueprint for composure on the global stage.
Shai Hope’s ODI Career
Making his ODI debut for the West Indies against Sri Lanka in November 2016, at a time when the team was searching desperately for stability at the top of the order, Shai Hope has steadily transformed himself into the bedrock of Caribbean batting
Following the retirement of West Indies batting giants, including Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and Dwayne Bravo, the right-hander batter accepted the mantle of responsibility with quiet pose with quiet poise, anchoring innings after innings and proving to be the ultimate beacon of dependability in a volatile era of white-ball cricket.
Scoring his first ODI century against Zimbabwe, Shai Hope went on to score centuries against 11 nations, with four against India followed by Bangladesh, against whom he registered three tons, underlining his remarkable consistency across conditions and opposition.
The Barbadian maestro has accumulated two centuries apiece against England, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, while also reaching the three-figure mark against South Africa, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, the Netherlands, Ireland, Nepal, and New Zealand. Shai Hope’s consistency in ODI cricket has apparently revived the West Indies’ hopes of finding a dependable batting mainstay.
In his ODI career, Hope has amassed 6428 runs, including 20 centuries and 32 fifties, at an average of 50.21 in 157 matches.
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