Matthew Hayden is one of the most destructive openers that the game has seen. At his peak, it was a hard task for the bowlers to dismiss the Aussie cricketer. Throughout his career, he set many records which were broken after some time. However, there are a few statistics in which he is No.1 and it would be a massive feat if anyone else overtakes the southpaw. Here, we take a look at two world records of Matthew Hayden which might never be broken.
1) Highest individual score as an opener – 380
For a long time, Brian Lara‘s 375 was the highest individual score in an inning for a batter in Tests. However, in 2003 against Zimbabwe, with brilliant innings, Matthew Hayden scored 380 and took the top spot on the list.
It did not take long for the West Indian legend to reclaim the record as within a few months, he scored a four hundred. Till now, no one has been able to displace Lara. However, as an opener, no one has got a higher score than Hayden. The current era demands an approach which would need batters to take more risks. In this scenario, it would be difficult for anyone to beat Hayden’s record.
2) More than 1000 Test runs for 5 consecutive years
To have scored more than 1000 Test for five straight years is one of the world records of Matthew Hayden which might never be broken. Between 2001 and 2005, Hayden scored more than 1000 Test runs every year. This makes him the only player to maintain such consistency.
Steve Smith did come close to this record almost a decade later. However, Smith could only get to four continuous years with more than 1000 Test runs. While it is possible to score 1000 runs in a calendar year for a few years, it is almost impossible to do that for five straight years. Especially with the amount of data and analytics involved, this is a big record to break.
