Martin Guptill retired from international cricket after a stellar 13-year career (Photo by Kelly Barnes/Getty Images)
Martin Guptill called it quits for New Zealand after a 13-year long career, last representing the national side in a T20I against Bangladesh in October, 2022. Guptill was an underachiever in Test cricket where he just averaged 29.38 in 47 matches but had a brilliant record for his country in white-ball cricket.
RG looks at a few standout numbers from Guptill’s limited-overs’ career for New Zealand.
7346 – The third-highest run-getter for New Zealand in ODI cricket
Guptill had an aggregate of 7346 runs in 195 ODI innings at an average of 41.73 and strike rate of 87.29. He is the third-highest run-scorer for New Zealand in ODI cricket after Ross Taylor (8607) and Stephen Fleming (8007). In terms of average, he is placed at number 3 after Kane Williamson (48.64) and Taylor (47.55) amongst the 22 New Zealand batters who scored a minimum of 2000 ODI runs. Only Brendon McCullum has a higher strike rate (96.37) than Guptill on this list! Guptill recorded 18 hundreds in the format during his career which are second only to Taylor’s 21.
Guptill was also the fourth-highest scorer in the world in ODI cricket during his career (from January, 2009 till September, 2022) after Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Hashim Amla.
50 – Guptill’s batting average during 2015-2017 in ODI cricket
Guptill was at the peak of his batting prowess in ODIs in the three-year period from 2015 till 2017. He hammered big runs at a very high scoring rate in this time-frame. Guptill was the fifth-highest run-getter in the world in this time-frame after Kohli, David Warner, Rohit and Williamson. He had a batting average of 50 and his strike rate of 97.81 placed him at number 7 in the world. Just for perspective, Guptill was more destructive in this period than Rohit, Kohli, Aaron Finch, Amla and Faf du Plessis amongst others. Seven of his 18 ODI hundreds came in this time-frame.
547 – The highest run-getter of the 2015 World Cup
Guptill was in outstanding form with the bat in the 2015 World Cup co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. He was the leading run-getter of the tournament and played a pivotal role in taking New Zealand to the final. Guptill hammered 547 runs in just nine innings at a brilliant strike rate of 104.58 with two hundreds in the tournament. He created history when he blasted an unbeaten 237 off just 163 deliveries against West Indies in the Quarter-Final in Wellington – it was the second double ton and highest individual score ever recorded in World Cups! New Zealand piled on a massive 393/6 – their highest team total in World Cup cricket at the time!
3/4 – Guptill holds the record for 3 out of the 4 highest scores for New Zealand in ODI cricket
Guptill has the distinction of holding the unique record for recording three of the four highest scores for New Zealand in ODI cricket. Apart from his sensational 237 in the 2015 World Cup, Guptill smashed a scintillating undefeated 189 against England in Southampton in 2013. He also hammered an unbeaten 180 against South Africa in Hamilton in 2017.
4285 – The highest aggregate in ODIs in New Zealand
No batter has scored more runs in ODI cricket in New Zealand than Guptill. He had an aggregate of 4285 runs in 99 innings at an average of 48.69 and strike rate of 92.13 with 11 hundreds and 22 fifties in the country.
3531 – The leading scorer for New Zealand in T20I cricket
Guptill was also a prolific run-getter in T20I cricket and had the highest aggregate for New Zealand in the format. Overall, he is at number 5 on the list after Rohit, Babar Azam, Kohli and Paul Stirling.
Guptill scored 3531 runs in 118 T20I innings at an average of 31.8 and strike rate of 135.7 with two hundreds.
173 – The second-most sixes in T20I cricket
Guptill was an aggressive stroke-maker who did not shy of hitting the ball in the air. He was one of the best during his career in clearing the ropes and blasted 173 sixes in T20I cricket – the second-most ever in the format after Rohit Sharma!
Nikhil Narain is a die-hard cricket romantic, published author, and has worked for some of the leading digital websites and broadcasters in India and overseas. An alumnus of the London School of Economics, Nikhil's forte is using data and numbers creatively to weave interesting stories and revolutionize the way cricket statistics are generated and analyzed.
