Cricket : Fastest ODI Centuries Scorers of All Time

ODI cricket or 50 over cricket is very popular format of the cricket match since its inception. ODI cricket has been dominated mostly by the batsmen as ODI rules are more in favor to batsman than the bowlers. Here in this article we are going to see the list of fastest ODI hundred scorers in the ODI cricket history. Corey Anderson the all-rounder from New Zealand holds the record of fastest century in the history of ODI cricket. Corey Anderson scored the century in just 36 balls against West Indies hitting 12 sixes and bettered the record of Shahid Afridi by 1 ball.

Corey Anderson : Fastest ODI Century Scorer in ODI Cricket History

Earlier the record was held by Pakistan's flamboyant all-round cricketer Shahid Afridi. Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi scored 2nd fastest ODI century against Sri Lanka in just 37 balls hitting 11 sixes and 4 fours in his whirl wind inning way back in 1996. The record made by Afridi remained on top for approximately 18 long years. The below given list of fastest ODI century scorers is dominated by the cricketers from the Asian sub-continent.

Shahid Afridi : Fastest ODI Century Scorer from Asia

South African wicket-keeper batsman Mark Boucher holds the record of scoring 3rd fastest ODI hundred against Zimbabwe in 2006. Boucher completed his century in just 44 balls hitting 10 sixes and 8 fours. West Indies great batsman Brian Lara scored fourth fastest ODI hundred against Bangladesh in just 45 balls. Lara struck 4 sixes and 18 boundaries in 1999 to complete the century. Shahid Afridi also holds the record of scoring fifth fastest ODI century against the Indian in just 45 balls comprising of 9 sixes and 10 fours.

List of Fastest Century Scorers in ODI Cricket

Player(Country)	Runs	Balls	Sixes	Fours	Opponent	Year
Corey Anderson(NZ)	131*	36	14	06	WestIndies	2014
Shahid Afridi(PAK)	102	37	11	06	Sri Lanka	1996
Mark Boucher(RSA)	147*	44	10	18	Zimbabwe	2006
Brian Lara(WI)	117	45	04	18	Bangladesh	1999
Shahid Afridi(PAK)	102	45	09	10	India	2005
S Jayasuriya(SL)	134	48	11	11	Pakistan	1996
Kevin O’Brien(IRE)	113	50	06	13	England	2011
Virat Kohli(IND)	100*	52	07	08	Australia	2013
Shahid Afridi(PAK)	124	53	04	17	Bangladesh	2010
S Jayasuriya(SL)	130	55	06	16	Bangladesh	2008

Indian batting sensation Virat Kohli is only player from India to get his name into the list of fastest century scorers with hundred in just 52 balls. Virat Kohli scored this century against the Australia hitting 7 sixes and 8 fours in recently concluded Star-Sports ODI Cricket Series 2013. This list is dominated by Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi who has scored three of the top 10 fastest ODI hundreds followed by Sanath Jayasuriya who has two hundreds in his name. 

Virat Kohli : Fastest ODI Cricket Century Scorer from India

Apart from the Shahid Afridi and Sanath Jayasuriya players like Virat Kohli, Kevin O’Brien, Brian Lara and Mark Boucher have their name in the list of top 10 fastest ODI century scorers in ODI cricket history. This list is quite surprising as it doesn't have a single player from the Australian cricket team. Australian team has dominated the ODI cricket along with the West Indies for the most period of time since the inception of ODI cricket. 

There have been many changes in the ODI cricket rules such as two new balls in an innings and presence of 4 fielders at most in an inning. The way rule of ODI cricket has changed this list is definitely going to see the addition of the new names in the near future soon as these rules are more suitable for the free scoring of batsman. Inception of the T20 cricket has also helped batsman to play more strokes even in the 50 over format of cricket.