IPL 2020: 5 batsmen who can break Chris Gayle's record of fastest century

T20 cricket, as they say, is all about fours and sixes. The spectators expect huge hits and big runs being scored, and the IPL has produced a lot of that over the years.

Batsmen in the IPL have played some unbelievable innings which have been inked in the fans' memories forever. One of those batsmen who have lit up the tournament over and over again is West Indies opener Chris Gayle.

Gayle's reputation of being a hard-hitting batsman was enhanced considerably after his IPL exploits. After a sedate start, Gayle's fortunes changed after he started playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore. The big Jamaican decimated bowling attacks in RCB colours and became the crowd favorite at Bengaluru.

Gayle also has a list of IPL records to his name. While he has scored the highest number of IPL hundreds, Gayle is also the one to hit the fastest hundred in IPL history. In fact, his 30-ball hundred against Pune Warriors is the fastest T20 hundred in all competitions.

It's been seven years since he achieved this landmark, but no batsman has been able to come anywhere close to breaking the record. However, there are a few players in the upcoming season who have the ability to do so.

Also see – IPL 2020 time table

Here are the five batsmen who can beat Gayle's record of the fastest century in IPL 2020.

#5 Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler is one of the cleanest strikers of the cricket ball in the world. The Englishman did not have the best of the starts to his IPL career as he struggled to get going in the middle-order. However, Rajasthan Royals' move to elevate Buttler to the top order did wonders for both the Royals and Buttler.

Since being given the license to go for the kill from the start, Buttler has played some match-winning innings for the Royals. The 29-year-old has a career strike-rate of over 150.

Also, with the T20 World Cup in mind, Buttler has been recently promoted to open the innings for his national side as well. He would certainly be eyeing Gayle's record in this year's IPL.

#4 KL Rahul

KL Rahul

KL Rahul has been in sensational form in limited-overs cricket of late. Rahul has been particularly impressive in the IPL playing for Kings XI Punjab; the right-handed batsman scored 659 runs in 2018 and 593 runs in 2019. Rahul also smashed the fastest IPL fifty, off just 14 deliveries, in 2018.

Owing to his consistency, Rahul has been handed the captaincy for the upcoming season. He has been unstoppable in India colours in the recent past and considering his red-hot form in T20 cricket, Rahul could be a candidate to break his teammate's record of the fastest century.

#3 Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell has blown hot and cold in the IPL. While the Australian has played some flashy innings, he hasn't consistently lived up to his reputation apart from a splendid season in 2014.

Having said that, you can never count a player of Maxwell's calibre out. The 'Big Show' possesses an IPL career strike-rate of 161.13 and is more than capable of breaking any sort of batting record on his day.

He was in great form in the recently concluded BBL, where he scored 398 runs at an average of 39.80. Maxwell is likely to miss the initial phase of the season but he would hope to make up for it by playing some big innings once he is available.

#2 Andre Russell

Andre Russell

Andre Russell has destroyed several bowling attacks in the IPL with his big hitting. At times he has even won matches single-handedly, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

The West Indies all-rounder has been the Kolkata Knight Riders' trump card, and they have used him quite smartly. Knowing that he does not need much time to settle before he goes for the big ones, Russell has been unleashed only in the latter half of the innings.

If given a chance to bat a little higher, Gayle's record of the fastest century won't be out of Russell's reach.

#1 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma, who has hit the most T20I hundreds, will be disappointed with himself for having just one IPL century to his name.

Apart from holding the record for most T20I hundreds, Rohit also jointly holds the record for the fastest T20I hundred - courtesy his 35-ball century against Sri Lanka at Indore in 2017.

When in full flow, Rohit is one of the most dangerous batsmen around. The Mumbai Indians skipper is capable of hitting the ball to all parts of the ground and is a difficult batsman to contain.

Moreover, he has started to open the innings for the Mumbai Indians regularly, which means more opportunities for the 'Hitman' to break Gayle's record.