Fastest Hundreds in World Cup | ODI WCs Fastest Centuries

For the ODI World Cup 2023, the pitches are set to be conducive to batters, and no wonder if you see someone score a double hundred. White-ball cricket, and especially ODI cricket, needs the batters to shine.

Cricket as an entity needs its batters to survive.

Ahead of the tournament this year, go through the list of Fastest Hundreds in World Cup ODI Cricket. Let’s just dabble a bit into the history and see some of the past knocks. 

List of Fastest Hundreds In World Cup ODI Cricket

Here’s the complete list of all the fastest hundreds in World Cup ODI Cricket, along with the number of deliveries faced, opposition and the team the player belongs to. 

Player	Nation	Balls (For Century)	Opposition
Kevin O’Brien	Ireland	50	England
Glenn Maxwell	Australia	51	Sri Lanka
Ab de Villiers	South Africa	52	West Indies
Eoin Morgan	England	57	Afghanistan
Matthew Hayden	Australia	66	South Africa
Jim Davison	Canada	67	West Indies
Kumar Sangakkara	Sri Lanka	70	England
Paul Stirling	Ireland	70	Netherlands
Kapil Dev	India	72	Zimbabwe
Adam Gilchrist	Australia	72	Sri Lanka

Top 5 Fastest Hundreds in ODI World Cricket History

There are many explosive hundreds in the ODI World Cup, we take a look at the five fastest hundreds which belong to:

• Kevin O’Brien
• Glenn Maxwell
• AB de Villers
• Eoin Morgan
• Matthew Hayden

Kevin O’Brien:

Irish O’Brien slammed 113 off just 63 balls as Ireland chased down the total of 328 with 5 balls remaining against England in Bengaluru during the 2011 ODI World Cup. He is the No.1 in the list of fastest hundreds in World Cup. 

• England had won the toss and opted to bat first, and they managed to post a total of 327, riding on 92 from Jonathan Trott and 81 from Ian Bell.
• In reply, Kevin O’Brien brought his ‘A’ game to the table, slamming 113 off just 63 balls; this also included the fastest century in ODI World Cup history, which came off just 50 balls.
• Ireland were struggling at 111/5, but the way they chased the total down broke many records and won the Irish many fans.

Glenn Maxwell:

Maxwell’s century came against Sri Lanka at the SCG during the 2015 ODI World Cup.

• Sri Lanka had batted first with Steve Smith and Michael Clarke both scoring fifties, but then walked in Maxwell, and he started to counter-attack, slamming his century in just 51 balls.
• Sri Lanka were taken aback and conceded a total of 376/9.
• In reply, Sri Lanka managed to score 312, losing the match by 64 runs.

Ab de Villers:

South Africa had won the toss and opted to bat against the West Indies in the 2015 ODI World Cup match at the SCG, and the decision proved okay. The openers had given them a solid start, but it wasn’t a destructive one.

• But then walked in on De Villers, and he soon started going after the bowlers.
• Walking in to bat at five, he slammed 162 off just 65 balls, with the century coming off just 52 balls.
• Thanks to this performance, South Africa managed to post a humongous total of 408/5.
• In reply, the West Indies were all out for 151, losing the match by 257 runs.

Eoin Morgan:

The England skipper came into his own as he slammed the highest number of maximums in that entire innings, which came in the 2019 ODI World Cup.

• Yes, he slammed a world record 17 sixes, which came against Afghanistan at Old Trafford, Manchester.
• England had won the toss and opted to bat first.
• They were going along fine until Morgan came into his own. He slammed the fourth-fastest hundred in 57 balls en route to his 148 off 71 balls.
• England posted 397/6 in the allotted 50 overs, and Afghanistan never quite made it that far, getting all out for 247/8 and ultimately losing the match by 150 runs.

Matthew Hayden:

It was Australia vs. South Africa and the last group match in 2007 ODI World Cup.

Australia had batted first on the belter of a pitch at the St. Kitts Stadium, and the openers made merry.

• Both openers gave Australia such a start that they were 100 up in the 14th over. After Adam Gilchrist departed, Hayden and Ricky Ponting took over and shared a partnership of 61 runs for the third wicket.
• After Ponting’s 91, Michael Clarke also scored 92, but it was Hayden who slammed the fifth-fastest century in the ODI World Cup, which came in just 66 balls.
• He would end up scoring 101 off 68 balls as Australia would post a total of 377/6 and win the match by 83 runs.

Final Thoughts on Fastest Hundreds in World Cup (ODI Cricket)

These are some of the fastest centuries that came in the ODI World Cup.

Interestingly, most of these matches came in the post-2000 period. A time when T20 cricket was rising and influencing batters across the world. They were no longer afraid to go for the shots. They would go after the bowlers without any mercy, and it showed in their batting.

Four of the five hundreds have come in the post-2010 period and three after 2015, when T20 cricket was mainstream. It clearly shows how cricket has become ruthless.

And now it needs to be seen if the same ferociousness will be on display in the upcoming 2023 ODI World Cup, where the pitches will be tailor-made for lethal batting.