10 fastest hundreds in International Cricket

Just as another scorching day passed by at Perth in the Big Bash League, Craig Simmons of the Perth Scorchers scored a 39 ball century. In recent memory in International cricket, the likes of Corey Anderson and Virat Kohli have got to their hundreds at lightning speed. Here is a look at ten of the fastest hundreds ever scored in International Cricket.

10. Kevin O’Brien – 50 Balls – ODI

England. In a World Cup. Big crowd at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Is there a better time to score your country’s fastest time as an Irishman? Kevin O’Brien smashed the England bowlers to all corners of the Chinnaswamy as he led Ireland to a famous win, chasing a steep target of 328.

9. Sanath Jayasuriya – 48 Balls – ODI

In 1996, Sanath Jayasuriya was redefining the art of ODI batting. Jayasuriya was showing the world that the new ball could be taken on with plenty of success. In this game against Pakistan, he scored 134 off 68 balls, hitting 11 fours and 11 sixes as Sri Lanka posted 349 in their 50 overs, which proved a bridge too far for the Pakistanis.

8. Aaron Finch – 47 Balls – T20I

After Australia had convincingly lost the Ashes series, the limited overs leg of the tour began in stupendous fashion with Finch blazing 156 of 63 balls. While he got to his 100 in 57 balls, the 15 balls that followed were total destruction with the likes of Joe Root and Danny Briggs absolutely ripped apart. Finch made 156 in a total of 249, that proved too much for England to surpass.

7. Jesse Ryder – 46 Balls – ODI

While the Queenstown ODI will be remembered as the “Corey Anderson Match”, Jesse Ryder in fact, wasn’t to be left far behind. Making his comeback from a life threatening head injury, Ryder enjoyed some helpful West Indies bowling and small boundaries on his way to taking New Zealand to set a near-impossible target for the Windies to achieve.

6. Brian Lara – 45 Balls – ODI

Lara displayed his full array of strokes as Bangladesh were put to the sword at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka. With the Windies batting first, Lara opened the innings and smashed what was then the second fastest hundred in history. The likes of Manjural Islam and Khaled Mahmud were taken to the cleaners as Lara hit 18 fours and 4 sixes on his way to leading the Windies to a comprehensive win.

5. Shahid Afridi – 45 Balls – ODI

India had made 250 in a grudge match of the ODI series at Kanpur. India would’ve fancied their chances, with their spinners on a slow wicket, but Afridi had other ideas. He batted like he always does, without a care in the world and absolutely smashed the Indian bowler to all parts of the Green Park Stadium as Pakistan easily chased down India’s total and took a 3-2 lead in 6-match series.

4. Richard Levi – 45 Balls – T20I

After having lost the first game in the 3 match series, South Africa conceded 173 bowling first. They needed a strong start from their openers to have a fair chance of chasing down the total. And Richard Levi gave them just what they needed. Levi went berserk and was sever on all the Kiwi bowlers, especially Doug Bracewell who went for 37 runs in his 2 overs. Levi finished with 117 from 51 balls as South Africa chased the total down with 4 overs to spare.

3. Mark Boucher – 44 Balls – ODI

As cricket went to the little town of Potchefstroom, Mark Boucher provided the crowd with a day to remember. Batting first, Boucher walked in in the 28th over, with South Africa well placed at 199/2. What followed took South Africa to 418 in their 50 overs. An exceptional display of hitting saw Boucher hit 8 fours and 10 sixes as Zimbabwe were blown away.

2. Shahid Afridi – 37 Balls – ODI

In a grudge match of a quadrangular series held in Kenya, a little known 16 year old took the cricketing world by storm by battering the record for the fastest ODI century by 11 balls. Having been promoted to bat at no.3 after not having batted in his previous game, Afridi went berserk, especially against Sanath Jayasuriya. He took 41 runs off the 11 balls he faced from Jayasuriya. His innings went 0610400600661166264400661411041606024100. That set the hallmark that “Boom Boom” has struggled to match throughout his career.

1. Corey Anderson – 36 Balls – ODI

Corey Anderson rung in the new year with a dashing innings that pipped a record that stood for 18 years. On an overcast New Year’s day in Queenstown, the match between the hosts and West Indies got reduced to 21 overs, but what followed was destructive batting at its very best. Anderson, alongwith Jesse Ryder, put on a partnership of 191 in just 75 balls that destroyed the Windies, with Anderson finishing on 131* off 51 balls.