The Fastest Century in Men’s ODI Cricket is one of the most exciting achievements in limited-overs batting, measuring how quickly a player can reach the 100-run milestone in a 50-over match. When fans talk about the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket, fastest ODI century, or fastest hundred in ODI, they are usually referring to the number of balls needed to complete the three-figure score. The current fastest 100 in ODI cricket belongs to South Africa’s AB de Villiers, who reached his cricket century in just 31 balls against the West Indies in Johannesburg in 2015.
This record remains one of the most remarkable ODI batting records in cricket history and is also recognized as the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket and fastest hundred in international cricket. The quickest century in ODI cricket requires exceptional power, timing, shot selection, and the ability to score boundaries under pressure. In this article, we will look at the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket record, the major fastest century in men’s ODI cricket record holders, and the incredible innings that changed the history of men’s ODI cricket.
Table of Contents
AB de Villiers and World Record Terms
AB de Villiers produced one of the most extraordinary displays of explosive batting in ODI history on January 18 2015, when South Africa faced the West Indies at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. The South African batsman reached his hundred from only 31 balls, creating the AB de Villiers fastest century and a 31-ball century that became the fastest ODI century record holder at the time. His 31-ball hundred broke Corey Anderson’s previous 36-ball record and established a new world record ODI century.
The innings was much bigger than just a 31-ball century. De Villiers first smashed the fastest ODI fifty, reaching 50 from only 16 balls, before finishing with an astonishing 149 off 44 balls. His final score included 9 fours and 16 sixes, producing a strike rate of 338.64. This record-breaking innings helped South Africa reach 439/2 and beat the West Indies by 148 runs. The performance remains one of the defining moments in ODI batting, combining speed, power and precision in a way rarely seen in international cricket.
Top Fastest Century in Men’s ODI Cricket and Record Holders
The fastest century in men’s ODI cricket features some of the most explosive batting performances ever seen in the 50-over format. AB de Villiers leads the top 10 fastest century in men’s ODI cricket with his remarkable 31-ball hundred, followed by Corey Anderson with a 36-ball century and Shahid Afridi with a 37-ball century. The list also includes Glenn Maxwell, Asif Khan, Mark Boucher, Brian Lara, Shahid Afridi again, Jesse Ryder, and Jos Buttler. These innings remain among the fastest hundreds in ODI history, showing how quickly elite batters can turn an ODI into a one-sided contest.
Rank
Player
Balls
Final Score
Team
1
AB de Villiers
31
149
South Africa
2
Corey Anderson
36
131*
New Zealand
3
Shahid Afridi
37
102
Pakistan
4
Glenn Maxwell
40
106
Australia
5
Asif Khan
41
101*
UAE
6
Mark Boucher
44
147*
South Africa
7
Brian Lara
45
117
West Indies
8
Shahid Afridi
45
102
Pakistan
9
Jesse Ryder
46
104
New Zealand
10
Jos Buttler
46
116*
England
This fastest century in men’s ODI cricket list highlights several generations of aggressive batting. Corey Anderson, the New Zealand batsman, previously held the record with his 36-ball century, while Shahid Afridi, the explosive Pakistan batsman, had earlier set the benchmark with his famous 37-ball hundred. Later, Glenn Maxwell’s 40-ball century against the Netherlands and Asif Khan’s 41-ball century against Nepal added newer names to the record books.
Fastest Century in Men’s ODI cricket Statistics and Match Details
When comparing a record-breaking ODI century, the most important statistics are the balls faced and the balls taken to reach century. AB de Villiers needed only 31 batting balls to reach 100, before finishing his batting innings with 149 runs scored from 44 balls. His individual score came at a remarkable 338.63 strike rate, showing just how extraordinary his scoring rate was. He remained not out? Actually, de Villiers was dismissed for 149, so this was not an unbeaten century; the innings ended when he was caught at 49.4 overs.
The boundary numbers explain much of the incredible six-hitting and attacking batting strike rate. De Villiers hit 9 fours and 16 sixes, giving him a total boundary count of 25 and 100 runs from boundaries alone. The number of fours was nine, while the number of sixes was 16, making six-hitting the biggest feature of his innings. South Africa eventually reached 439/2 in 50 overs, with a team run rate of 8.78, while the West Indies scored 291/7 and lost the match by 148 runs.
Fastest ODI World Cup Centuries
The fastest century in ODI World Cup history is currently held by Glenn Maxwell, who smashed a 40-ball century for Australia against the Netherlands during the 2023 Cricket World Cup in Delhi. His innings was a spectacular example of modern attacking batting, and the fastest World Cup century came with eight sixes and nine fours. Maxwell eventually scored 106 from 44 balls as Australia posted 399/8 and won by 309 runs.
Before Maxwell’s record-breaking performance, Aiden Markram held the World Cup century record after scoring a 49-ball century against Sri Lanka in the same 2023 tournament. Markram’s record had itself broken Kevin O’Brien’s 50-ball century, which had stood since Ireland’s famous 2011 World Cup victory over England. O’Brien scored 113 from 63 balls, including 13 fours and six sixes.
Among the notable World Cup fastest hundreds, Glenn Maxwell’s 40-ball century, Aiden Markram’s 49-ball century, and Kevin O’Brien’s 50-ball century are the key record-breaking performances. AB de Villiers’ 52-ball century is also an important entry in fastest century in men’s ODI cricket records, while the broader World Cup batting statistics show how attacking batting has transformed ODI World Cup innings. These performances have made their players some of the most memorable fastest century in men’s ODI cricket record holders and continue to define the history of rapid scoring at the tournament.
Fastest Century in Men’s ODI Cricket Rules and Format Terms
A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited-overs cricket in which each side normally plays one innings, with a maximum of 50 overs. Under the current standard ODI playing conditions, a team can be dismissed before its full 50 overs or complete the quota without being all out. The team batting first sets the target, while the second team attempts a chase by scoring more runs than the opposition.
The ODI format also places strong emphasis on strategic fielding restrictions and the powerplay, which influence how teams approach their batting innings and bowling attack. In a 50-over innings, Powerplay 1 covers overs 1–10 with no more than two fielders outside the restriction area, Powerplay 2 covers overs 11–40 with a maximum of four outside, and Powerplay 3 covers overs 41–50 with up to five outside. These rules affect the batting order, from the attacking opener and top order to the number three batsman, middle-order batsman, and finisher. Players must adapt their run scoring according to the situation, while the scoreboard tracks the team total, wickets, overs and required runs during the chase.
Record Comparison and Historical Terms
The world record for the fastest century in ODI cricket is held by AB de Villiers, who reached 100 from just 31 balls against the West Indies in Johannesburg on January 18, 2015. Before this record-breaking performance, New Zealand’s Corey Anderson was the record holder with a 36-ball century, while Shahid Afridi had previously set the benchmark with a 37-ball hundred in 1996.
A useful record comparison is to look at the fastest versus slowest pace at which players reached the milestone, although these records represent very different batting eras and conditions. The broken record held by Afridi, followed by Anderson and then de Villiers, illustrates the evolution of aggressive ODI batting.
Record Comparison and Historical Terms
When comparing the fastest ODI centuries across different eras, it is important to look beyond the number of balls taken and consider the match situation, batting conditions, and pitch conditions. Some centuries were scored on flat batting tracks with short boundaries, while others came against high-quality attacks in more challenging environments. These factors often influence how quickly a batter can score and help provide better context when evaluating record-breaking performances throughout cricket history.
The quality of the opposition bowling also plays a major role in any record comparison. Batters must face a variety of challenges, including a strong bowling attack featuring pace bowling, spin bowling, and experienced fast bowlers. Modern bowlers use tactics such as slower balls, yorkers, bouncers, and accurate full deliveries to restrict scoring opportunities. However, even the best bowling plans can be punished when a batter is in exceptional form, especially if bowlers offer loose deliveries that can be dispatched to the boundary. The ability to dominate different bowling styles and adapt to varying match conditions is what makes the fastest ODI centuries some of the most remarkable achievements in cricket.
If you’re new to cricket, one of the first terms you’ll hear is what is a century in cricket. A century simply means a batter scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. This is the basic cricket century meaning, while ODI century meaning and ODI hundred meaning are the same when the achievement happens in a One Day International. In simple terms, 100 runs in cricket is the century milestone that represents an important batting milestone.
Who has the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket?
AB de Villiers holds the record for the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket. He scored his century in just 31 balls for South Africa against West Indies in 2015.
How many balls did AB de Villiers take to score his ODI century?
AB de Villiers reached his century in only 31 balls, making it the fastest century in men’s ODI cricket.
Who has the second-fastest century in ODI cricket?
Corey Anderson scored the second-fastest ODI century, reaching 100 runs from 36 balls for New Zealand against West Indies in 2014.
Who scored the fastest century for Pakistan in ODI cricket?
Shahid Afridi holds one of Pakistan’s fastest ODI century records, scoring a hundred from 37 balls against Sri Lanka in 1996.
What is the fastest century in ODI World Cup history?
Glenn Maxwell scored one of the fastest ODI World Cup centuries, reaching 100 from 40 balls against the Netherlands during the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
For beginners, the key question is how many runs is a century? The answer is 100. However, reaching 100 is not only about the runs; the number of balls required for a century also matters when comparing batting performances. A batter scoring 100 from 60 balls has a very different scoring rate from someone reaching the same milestone in 31 balls. This is why terms such as fastest 100 runs, cricket statistics, and ODI batting records explained are commonly used when discussing Fastest Century in Men’s ODI Cricket records explained and ODI records for beginners.
Bilal Ahmad
Bilal Ahmad is the Founder and Editor of GlobalNewsHubz. He writes about technology, world news, government schemes, and digital trends. His goal is to provide readers with accurate, well-researched, and easy-to-understand information using trusted and official sources.
