IPL 2020, DC vs CSK: Shikhar Dhawan surpasses Chris Gayle in unique IPL record

Delhi Capitals (DC) batsman Shikhar Dhawan surpassed Chris Gayle in an Indian Premier League (IPL) record during his match-winning knock against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Saturday.

During his unbeaten 58-ball 101 against CSK, Dhawan bagged the record of most runs as an opener in the IPL. Dhawan now has 4,531 runs in 148 innings as an opening batsman ahead of Gayle, who has scored 4,480 runs in 122 innings.

Next on the list are Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) opener David Warner (4,382 runs in 114 innings), former DC and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Gautam Gambhir (3,597 runs in 123 innings), and DC's Ajinkya Rahane (3,436 runs in 110 innings), who also played for Rajasthan Royals earlier in his IPL career.

Among Indian batsmen in the IPL, Dhawan also holds the record of most number of 50-plus scores in the tournament. Dhawan has registered 39 half-centuries, while the overall record currently belongs to SRH's Warner with 46 fifties in the IPL. The trio of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Suresh Raina has scored 38 fifties each so far in the Indian T20 league. These three are the only batsmen in the IPL to have scored 5,000 or more runs in the IPL. With 5,759 runs in 178 innings, Kohli is the leading run-scorer in the IPL with Raina and Rohit in second and third place with 5,368 and 5,149 runs respectively.

On Saturday, Dhawan recorded his maiden IPL ton. The 34-year-old Delhi batsman took 168 matches and 13 years to finally score a hundred in the IPL. By doing so, Dhawan became the 17th Indian batsman to register a century in the tournament. Dhawan, who has been a part of the IPL since the maiden edition in 2008, has overall scored 4,938 runs at an average of 34.29.

Reacting to his first IPL century, Dhawan termed it as a "very special moment" during the post-match presentation. "It's very special (first IPL ton). Playing for 13 years, so very special. Really happy. At the start of the tournament, I was hitting the ball but I wasn't converting the 20s or 30s into fifties. Once you start doing that, you get more confidence.

I just want to continue the same form and make the most of it. I keep my mindset positive; I don't think a lot. Of course, I do have a few strategies according to pitch. I feel I have courage. It (fitness) is very important. Luckily, I was able to work a lot on my routine due to this long break we had due to Corona," added Dhawan.