53 days to World Cup: Ishwar Maraj registers slowest ODI fifty

The 2003 World Cup was a rollercoaster ride for Canada, who broke several records in the process. Some memorable, some not so much.
He was dropped at least four times en route to his record-breaking fifty | AFP
He was dropped at least four times en route to his record-breaking fifty | AFP

It is all about making your mark. Some strive to make their mark and go their entire careers without getting the opportunity to do it. Yet some get the opportunity to do it right at the start in the biggest stage of them all.

53 days to go before the start of World Cup 2019, here's a look back at one man who made his mark on the world stage in the 2003 World Cup, playing in only his fifth ODI.

The 2003 World Cup was a rollercoaster ride for Canada, who broke several records in the process. After beginning the tournament with an upset victory over Bangladesh, they registered the lowest ODI total, against Sri Lanka before John Davison hit what was at the time, the fastest-ever ICC Cricket World Cup century against West Indies.

Then came the clash against South Africa, where Ishwar Maraj scripted a little piece of history of his own. After coming through the ranks in Trinidad and playing professionally in the UK and guiding Canada to the World Cup courtesy of his three fifties in the 2001 ICC Trophy, Maraj had already done more than most players.

Yet, he was determined to make his mark in the World Cup, in which he had only managed 45 runs in his first four matches. 

Chasing 255 against South Africa and with his side struggling at 28/3 against a bowling line-up that included Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini and Allan Donald, Maraj took the safety first approach.

With victory all but beyond Canada, once they were at 58/4 in the 28th over, Maraj decided to stick around till the end. It was tedious and at times far from pretty but he decided to script a painstaking innings that saw him carry his bat and register his maiden ODI fifty.

Whether it was really the best approach is debatable but playing in what would be his penultimate ODI, Maraj entered his name into the record books. He took 148 balls to register his fifty, which is the most by any batsman in ODI history.

Although he was dropped at least four times, his unbeaten 155-ball 53 (s/r 34.19) broke the record of the slowest ODI fifty, breaking the record previously held by Pakistan's Javed Miandad, who registered an unbeaten 63 off 167 balls (37.72) against West Indies at Perth in 1989. Sunil Gavaskar's 144-ball 55 (38.19), which was the slowest World Cup fifty before then was also broken.

With no batsman coming close to registering a slower ODI fifty since then, it is safe to say that Maraj's place in the record books is safe. And while it may not have been for the reason he would have wanted, Ishwar Maraj certainly made his mark at the biggest stage. 

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