Rohit Sharma Innings: Number of Records Broken After Scoring 264 Runs and How He Transformed from 'No-Hit to Rohit'

Indian opener Rohit Sharma created history when he scored 264 runs in the fourth One Day International (ODI) against Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens on Thursday.

The right-handed batsman helped the World Champions score a mammoth total of 404 for the loss of five wickets, as Virat Kohli's side registered a comfortable 153-run victory to take a 4-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.

Sharma's knock of 264 came from just 173 deliveries. He hammered 33 fours and 9 sixes, before being caught on the final delivery of India's innings. The 27-year-old already holds multiple records and has now add several more to his list.

Records Broken by Rohit Sharma in the Fourth ODI against Sri Lanka

• Sharma's score of 264 runs is the highest individual score in an International match and the second highest score in List A cricket, which includes domestic ODI matches. Ali Brown of Surrey holds the record after scoring 268 against Glamorgan in 2002.
• He became the first batsman in the history of ODI cricket to score two double hundreds. His first double hundred came against Australia in 2013. During his knock of 209 against Australia, he smashed 16 sixes, which is the record for the most number of sixes in ODIs.
• He scored 33 fours in his knock of 264 and that has seen him surpass Virender Sehwag (25 against West Indies in 2010) and Sachin Tendulkar (25 against South Africa in 2010) for the most number of boundaries by a player in a match.
• Sharma faced 173 balls and that is the record for most number of balls faced by any batsman in a 50-over match.
• Apart from Sharma's knock of 264, skipper Virat Kohli was the second highest with 66 runs. The difference between Sharma and the stand-in captain's runs was 198, which is the highest difference between the top run scorer and the second batsman in ODIs.
• His knock of 264 runs had seen him score 42 boundaries (33 fours and 9 sixes), which is the record for most number of boundaries scored in an innings after breaking Sehwag's record of 32 boundaries (25 fours and 7 sixes).

Rohit Sharma's Comeback to the Indian Squad

After enjoying a successful season in the Ranji Trophy (India's domestic cricket tournament) with Mumbai, Sharma was selected for ODI's in June 2007 for the Future Cup in Ireland. He made his debut against Ireland on 23 June 2007.

Sharma made his mark on the international stage during the 2007 T20 World Cup against hosts South Africa. His unbeaten knock of 50 helped India progress in the competition, which MS Dhoni's men eventually went on to win by defeating Pakistan in the finals.

He was later selected for India's tour of Australia, where he played a supporting role in the middle order, scoring 235 runs in the series. However, he saw a dip in form over the next few years and his middle-order position was taken by Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli.

He went back to Mumbai and featured in Ranji Trophy and despite scoring a triple hundred in 2009, it was difficult for Sharma to make a comeback to the national squad. The right-handed batsman was also dropped from the 2011 World Cup squad, with Kohli and Raina taking his place in the squad.

In 2011, he joined the Indian Premier League side Mumbai Indians from Deccan Chargers (now called Sunrisers Hyderabad). Since joining the Mumbai based side, Sharma impressed with his bat and is currently their leading run scorer.

His impressive form for Mumbai Indians helped him receive a call for India's tour of West Indies in 2011. For the same tour, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, MS Dhoni opted out, while Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir failed to make it to the squad due to injuries.

Sharma impressed in the T20 fixture and also played a key role in the ODI series, which saw him bag his first Man of the Series award of his career. He continued his form with the bat and bagged another Man of the Series award against the West Indies, but this time it was on Indian soil.

As and when Sharma was impressing with the bat, India's then openers Sehwag and Gambhir were struggling at the top and Tendulkar had already announced his retirement from the shorter format of the game.

Sharma was promoted at the top and along with Shikhar Dhawan impressed in the limited overs format for India during the 2013 Champions Trophy in England. The duo has been the first choice opening pair for the defending World Champions since.

Trouble for Ajinkya Rahane?

Rohit Sharma fractured his middle finger during India's tour of England earlier in August and his absence saw Ajinkya Rahane being promoted at the top to play alongside Dhawan.

Rahane impressed for India and scored crucial runs to give the World Champions the much needed boost at the top. He has played 10 innings as an opener and managed 433 runs and that includes two hundred and two half centuries.

On Thursday, Rahane opened along with Sharma as the latter replaced Dhawan in the squad for the fourth and fifth ODIs. Dhawan has already impressed at the top and his place in the squad is unlikely to have any impact.

The 2015 ICC World Cup will kick-start in Australia on 14 February. The Indian selectors will have a tough choice in selecting their opening batsmen for their trip down under. With Sharma's latest knock, he is for sure to cement his place as an opener. Rahane is likely to make way for the right-handed batsman in the starting XI, if not in the squad.