Fastest Century in ODI Cricket — All-Time Records 2026

In a format already defined by speed and aggression, the fastest ODI centuries represent the absolute extremes of hitting — moments where a single batsman dismantled an entire bowling attack in barely the span of a television commercial break. AB de Villiers' 31-ball century in 2015 stands as the apex of this category, but the history behind how this record evolved is just as compelling as the record itself.

Before diving into the numbers, make sure you are familiar with key batting terms via the cricket glossary — especially strike rate, which is the core metric for assessing aggressive batting.

What Counts as a Fastest ODI Century?

A fastest century is counted by the fewest balls faced to reach 100 runs in an ODI innings. The ball count is tracked officially by scorers and confirmed by match umpires. It excludes Test and T20I innings — ODI-only.

The Top 10 Fastest Centuries in ODI Cricket History

Rank	Batsman	Balls	vs	Venue	Year
1	AB de Villiers	31	West Indies	Johannesburg	2015
2	Corey Anderson	36	West Indies	Queenstown	2014
3	Shahid Afridi	37	Sri Lanka	Nairobi	1996
4	Brian Lara	45	Bangladesh	Dhaka	1999
5	Eoin Morgan	45	Pakistan	Dubai	2009
6	Gary Kirsten	45	UAE	Rawalpindi	1996
7	AB de Villiers	44	Bangladesh	Mirpur	2015
8	Mark Boucher	44	Zimbabwe	Potchefstroom	2006
9	Luke Ronchi	46	Sri Lanka	Dunedin	2014
10	Rohit Sharma	52*	Sri Lanka	Dharamsala	2017

Figures represent official ball counts as recorded at the time of each innings. Some historical counts have minor variance across sources.

AB de Villiers — 31 Balls, One for the Ages

On 18 January 2015 at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, AB de Villiers produced one of the most breathtaking innings in cricket history. Chasing a target, South Africa needed quick runs, and ABD delivered — smashing 149 off just 44 balls, with his first 100 coming in only 31 balls.

He hit 16 sixes and 9 fours in that innings. At his peak, de Villiers was hitting balls that bowlers thought were unplayable. His 360-degree stroke play and ability to improvise in every direction made him the most complete ODI batter of his generation.

His overall ODI average of 53.50 — combined with a strike rate above 101 — is a combination no other batter in history has achieved across a long career. For context on similar explosive batting in the current era, see the IPL 2026 stats page.

Corey Anderson — The Brief Record Holder (36 Balls)

New Zealand's Corey Anderson entered ODI record books on 1 January 2014 against the West Indies in Queenstown. He reached his hundred off 36 balls — breaking the record that had stood for 18 years. Anderson went on to score 131* off 47 balls, the fastest ODI century at that time.

His record lasted barely 13 months before de Villiers swept it away in spectacular fashion at the Wanderers.

Shahid Afridi — 18 Years of Holding the Record

The story behind Shahid Afridi's 37-ball century is one of the great cricket legends. In October 1996 in Nairobi, the then-16-year-old Pakistani — playing just his second ODI — was handed Waqar Younis' bat and sent in as a pinch-hitter. What followed was an assault on the Sri Lankan bowling attack that produced a 37-ball century.

Afridi's record stood from 1996 to 2014 — 18 years — making it one of the most enduring records in cricket. He hit 11 sixes and 6 fours in the innings. The fact that he was a teenager making his mark on the world stage only adds to the legend.

The record's longevity is staggering when you consider how many world-class hitters — from Andrew Symonds to Chris Gayle — played through those 18 years without breaking it.

Indian Representation — Yuvraj Singh and Others

India's fastest ODI century comes from Yuvraj Singh, who reached three figures off 52 balls against England at The Oval in 2002. While it does not crack the top 10, Yuvraj is better known for his T20 exploits, particularly his famous 12-ball fifty in the 2007 World T20. MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli have also produced rapid centuries in the 60-75 ball range, but the format's pace records remain dominated by de Villiers and Anderson.

Among current Indian stars, Rohit Sharma features in the extended list with a 52-ball century, and his aggressive opening approach has contributed to several high-tempo innings.

How Records Have Shifted Over Decades

The evolution of fastest ODI century records mirrors the broader evolution of the format:

• 1970s-1980s: Centuries were rare, let alone fast ones. The format was slower and more conservative.
• 1996: Afridi's 37-ball record introduced the concept of pinch-hitting and changed how captains thought about lower-order batting.
• 2014: Corey Anderson's 36-ball effort reflected how T20 batting techniques had migrated into ODIs.
• 2015: AB de Villiers shattered everything with 31 balls, setting a benchmark that looks almost unassailable.

The gap between a 31-ball century and the next-fastest (36) suggests that de Villiers' record has a significant buffer, much like Tendulkar's overall run tally does in the all-time scorers list.

What Would It Take to Break 31 Balls?

Mathematically, breaking a 31-ball ODI century would require a strike rate of approximately 323 for those 31 balls — meaning nearly every delivery would need to go for 3+ runs. A 30-ball century would require a strike rate of 333. Given how bowlers and fielding restrictions interact, this remains a very difficult barrier to breach, though the format continues to evolve in a batting-friendly direction.

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FAQ

Who holds the fastest century record in ODI cricket? AB de Villiers of South Africa holds the record with a 31-ball century against the West Indies at Johannesburg in January 2015. He scored 149 off 44 balls total in that match.

Did Shahid Afridi once hold the fastest ODI century record? Yes. Shahid Afridi scored a 37-ball ODI century against Sri Lanka in Nairobi in 1996 — in just his second ODI match at age 16. That record stood for 18 years until Corey Anderson broke it in 2014 with a 36-ball hundred. De Villiers then set the current record of 31 balls in 2015.

What is the fastest century in T20 cricket? The fastest century in T20 International cricket was scored by Rohit Sharma in 35 balls against Sri Lanka in 2017. In club T20 cricket and the IPL, players like Chris Gayle have scored centuries in under 30 balls, though the most celebrated T20 century is Gayle's 66-ball IPL hundred.

Who has scored the most centuries in ODI cricket? Virat Kohli holds the record for most ODI centuries with 50+, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar's 49 in 2023.