List of Opening Day Centurions in ODI World Cup History

The ICC World Cup 2023 kickstarted on October 5, 2023, with New Zealand dominating the defending champions England. The match was played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The Kiwis gave England a taste of their own medicine with the bat.

Chasing 282 runs, England started well by getting a wicket upfront. But then two World Cup debutants Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra hammered amazing centuries in the 9-wicket win. This was a perfect start to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 tournament as two batters hit centuries on the opening day. 

With this in mind, we take a look at all the batters who hit a century on the opening day in the first match of the World Cup tournaments.

Check out the List of centurions on the opening day of ODI World Cup History:

1. Dennis Amiss- 137(147) vs IND, 1975 World Cup

England’s Dennis Amiss scored the first century in World Cup history, against India in the first match of the 1975 World Cup at Lord’s. The hosts won the toss and chose to bat. Amiss scored 137 in 147 balls with 18 fours as England posted 334/4 in 60 overs. In reply, India played out all 60 overs, scoring 132/3 with Sunil Gavaskar remaining unbeaten on 36 in 174 balls with 1 four. India lost the match by 202 runs. 

2. Gordon Greenidge- 137(147) vs IND, 1979 World Cup

West Indies faced India in the first match of the 1979 World Cup in Birmingham. Clive Lloyd won the toss and chose to bowl first. Michael Holding’s 4/33 kept India to 190, with Gundappa Viswanath top-scoring with 75. In response, Gordon Greenidge hammered out 137 in 147 balls with 9 fours and 1 six as West Indies won by 9 wickets.

3. Allan Lamb- 102(105) vs NZ, 1983 World Cup

England and New Zealand played the first match of the 1983 World Cup at the Oval. England batted first and Allan Lamb made merry with a century, scoring 102 in 105 balls with 12 fours and 2 sixes. England put up 322/6. In response, New Zealand could only manage 216 runs and lost by 106 runs. 

4. Javed Miandad- 103(100) vs SL, 1987 World Cup

Co-hosts Pakistan opened the 1987 World Cup with a match against Sri Lanka in Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad (Sindh). Pakistan batted first and put on 267/6 and was buoyed by Javed Miandad’s 103 runs with 6 fours. Ramiz Raja had also made 76 runs opening the innings. Roshan Mahanama’s 89 gave Sri Lanka a good chance as they made 252 runs and lost by only 15 runs.

5. Martin Crowe- 100* (134) vs AUS, 1992 World Cup

Co-hosts Australia and New Zealand played in the first match of the 1992 World Cup in Auckland. This was the first World Cup match to see two centuries hit on opening day. First Martin Crowe made 100* with 11 fours helping New Zealand put up 248/6, after electing to bat first. They managed to win by 37 runs despite David Boon’s best efforts.

6. David Boon- 100 (133) vs AUS, 1992 World Cup

Talking of David Boon, who set a target of 249 runs, he gave Australia a brilliant start, scoring 100 in 133 balls with 11 fours. But he failed to get any support from other batters, as Steve Waugh’s 38 was the next-best score. Australia only managed 211 and lost by 37 runs. 

Also check: ODI World Cup all-time records

7. Nathan Astle- 101 (132) vs ENG, 1996 World Cup

New Zealand and England opened the 1996 World Cup tournament in the old Gujarat Stadium in Ahmedabad. New Zealand was asked to bat first and thanks to Nathan Astle’s 101 with 8 fours and 2 sixes, they put up 239/6. It was a controlled innings by the batter on a difficult pitch. England could only make 228/9 with Graeme Hick scoring 85 and lost by 11 runs in a close encounter.

8. Brian Lara- 116 (134) vs SA, 2003 World Cup

West Indies clashed with hosts South Africa in the first match of the 2003 World Cup in Cape Town. West Indies batted first and lost both openers early. But experienced Brian Lara made 116 with 12 fours and 2 sixes to guide his team to 278/5. It was a brilliant knock with no other batter passing 50 for the Windies. In response, South Africa tried their best but lost by 3 runs in the end.   

9. Virender Sehwag- 175 (140) vs BAN, 2011 World Cup

India and Bangladesh, co-hosts of the ICC World Cup 2011 clashed in the opening match of the tournament in Dhaka. India batted first and posted 370/4 in 50 overs, it came majorly thanks to an explosive 175 in 140 balls from Virender Sehwag. The opener hit 14 fours and 5 sixes in his knock and got out in the 48^th over trying to hit big shots.  

10. Virat Kohli- 100 (83) vs BAN, 2011 World Cup

The 2011 World Cup opener between India and Bangladesh in Dhaka was Virat Kohli’s first-ever World Cup match and he shined with a brilliant 100* in 83 balls. Kohli became the first Indian to score a century on his Cricket World Cup debut. He hit 8 fours and 2 sixes in his knock and added 203 runs for the third wicket with Virender Sehwag.

11. Devon Conway- 152* (121) vs ENG, 2023 World Cup

New Zealand and England clashed in the opening match of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 in Ahmedabad. England was put into bat first and despite Joe Root’s 77, was restricted to 282/9 on a batting beauty pitch. The response saw World Cup debutant Devon Conway hammering the England bowlers to all corners of Motera ground. He made 152* in 121 balls with 19 fours and 3 sixes and was involved in a 283*-run partnership with another World Cup debutant from the Kiwi side.

12. Rachin Ravindra- 123* (96) vs ENG, 2023 World Cup

Rachin Ravindra had shown his batting skills in the warm-up match against Pakistan and New Zealand utilized the same to give England a taste of their aggressive batting style. Ravindra added 282 unbeaten runs for the second wicket with Conway. The 23-year-old finished with 123* in 96 balls with 11 fours and 5 sixes to his name. He also hit the fastest hundred in World Cups for New Zealand. 

Here's the list of centurions on World Cup debut: 

Also check: Most runs in ODI World Cup 2023