One of the most underrated white ball cricketers Alex Hales announced his retirement from international cricket on August 4, 2023. Hales recently helped England to win the T20 World Cup 2022 as he was phenomenal with the bat while opening. He made his T20I debut in 2011 against India.
Hales has played 11 Tests, 70 ODIs and 75 T20Is matches in his career and scored 573, 2419 and 2074 runs, respectively. He was also one of the key players of the English side, who helped England to change their approach in limited-overs cricket under Eoin Morgan. On that note, we will take a look at Hales’ top three knocks in international cricket.
1. 133* against Sri Lanka in 2016 (ODI)
England and Sri Lanka clashed against each other in the 2nd ODI match of the series in June 2016. Opting to bat first, the Sri Lankan team scored 254 runs in the 50 overs they played. The target was short but challenging, however, England’s openers Hales and Jason Roy had different things on their mind. Both of them scored centuries and helped the team to win the match by 10 wickets. Hales played an unbeaten knock of 133 runs off just 110 balls, which included 10 fours and 6 sixes.
2. 177 against Pakistan in 2016 (ODI)
Pakistan faced off against England in an ODI match in August 2016. England elected to bat first after winning the toss and destroyed the Pakistani bowlers. Hales was the highest run-scorer in the match as he scored 171 runs off just 122 deliveries, which included 22 fours and 4 sixes. His knock helped the team to achieve a humongous total of 444 runs in 50 overs.
3. 116* against Sri Lanka in 2014 (T20I)
The 2014 T20 World Cup saw a historic knock by Hales, when England clashed against Sri Lanka in a group-stage match. Batting first, the Sri Lankan team scored 189 runs for the loss of 4 wickets. Chasing the target, Hales took the whole thing in his hand and smashed a magnificent century. He played an unbeaten knock of 116 runs, which included 11 fours and 6 sixes. Hales also became the first-ever English centurion in T20I format.