Last Updated:
Breetzke scored 57 runs for the Proteas in the first ODI against Australia, and his 57-run knock helped him break the world record for scoring the most runs after the first 3 ODIs.
Matthew Breetzke scored 57 runs from 56 balls for South Africa on Tuesday. (Picture Credit: AFP)
South African batter Matthew Breetzke entered his name in the history books on Tuesday (August 19) by breaking the world record for scoring the most runs after the first three ODIs.
The 26-year-old right-handed batter, who made his ODI debut for the Proteas against New Zealand on February 10, 2025, at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, went past former England batter Nick Knight’s tally of runs. Knight, who made his ODI debut against Pakistan in Manchester on August 29, 1996, amassed a total of 264 runs for the English team in his first three ODIs. Whereas Breetzke has scored 290 runs.
The right-handed batter scored 57 runs from 56 balls against Australia on Tuesday in the first ODI of the bilateral series played at Cazaly’s Stadium in Cairns. In his first two ODI matches, he scored 150 runs against New Zealand and 83 runs against Pakistan in February 2025.
Most runs after first three ODIs
| PLAYER | TEAM | RUNS (1st ODI) | RUNS (2nd ODI) | RUNS (3rd ODI) | TOTAL |
| Matthew Breetzke | South Africa | 150 | 83 | 57 | 290 |
| Nick Knight | England | 26 | 113* | 125 | 264 |
| Temba Bavuma | South Africa | 113 | 48 | 98 | 259 |
| Allan Lamb | England | 35* | 99 | 118 | 252 |
| Mohammad Shahzad | Afghanistan | 16 | 110 | 118 | 244 |
The record of scoring the most runs after four ODIs is in the name of South Africa’s Temba Bavuma. Bavuma amassed a total of 280 runs after his first four 50-over matches for the Proteas. Even if Breetzke fails to open his account in the next ODI for the Proteas, he will remain ahead of Bavuma.
The fifty by Breetzke on Tuesday also helped him become the first South African and overall fourth cricketer in the world to score half-centuries in the first three ODIs. India’s Navjot Singh Sidhu was the first cricketer to achieve the feat. In fact, Sidhu crossed the 50-run mark in each of his first four ODI innings, and he was joined by Netherlands batters Tom Cooper in 2010 and Max O’Dowd in 2021.
Sidhu made his ODI debut against Australia in Chennai on October 9, 1987, and scored 73 runs in an ODI World Cup match. In his next game he made 75 against New Zealand in Bengaluru. He didn’t get a chance to bat in the third ODI against Zimbabwe, but in the fourth match he once again scored 51 runs against Australia in Delhi and then 55 against Zimbabwe in Ahmedabad.
In his first three ODIs for the Dutch team, Cooper registered scores of 80*, 87 and 67, whereas Max scored 86*, 59 and 82 runs.
Batters to score 50+ runs in first three ODIs
| PLAYER | TEAM | RUNS (1st ODI) | RUNS (2nd ODI) | RUNS (3rd ODI) | TOTAL |
| Navjot Singh Sidhu | India | 73 | 75 | 51 | 199 |
| Tom Cooper | Netherlands | 80* | 87 | 67 | 234 |
| Max O’Dowd | Netherlands | 86* | 59 | 82 | 227 |
| Matthew Breetzke | South Africa | 150 | 83 | 57 | 290 |
Breetzke, who plays for Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL, also holds the world record for scoring the most runs on ODI debut. On February 10, 2025, he became the first batter in the world to score 150 on ODI debut.
Read More
