Vijay Hazare Trophy: Why Sakibul Gani's 32-ball century is special
What's the story
Bihar captain Sakibul Gani, on December 24, created history by scoring the fastest century by an Indian in List A cricket. He hammered a 32-ball century against Arunachal Pradesh while leading Bihar in their opening Vijay Hazare Trophy match. The record-breaking match, played at JSCA Oval Ground in Ranchi, saw Bihar post a mammoth total of 574/6, the highest List A total. Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Ayush Loharuka also shone with their respective tons.
Batting blitz
Bihar's batting onslaught
Bihar's innings was nothing short of a batting onslaught, with three players scoring centuries. Gani remained unbeaten at 128 off just 40 balls, hitting 10 fours and 12 sixes. Ayush Loharuka scored a quickfire 116 off 56 balls, while teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi stole the show with an explosive knock of 190 off just 84 balls. The latter slammed a 36-ball century.
Historic feat
Gani reaches the summit
Gani's 32-ball century is now the fastest by an Indian in List A cricket. He surpassed Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who earlier set a new record, and Punjab's Anmolpreet Singh (35 balls) to reach the summit. Overall, Gani registered the third-fastest century in List A history. He is only behind Australia's Jake Fraser-McGurk (29 balls) and South Africa's AB de Villiers (31 balls).
Kishan
Ishan Kishan misses Gani's record
In another match later in the day, Jharkhand captain Ishan Kishan scored a blistering century off just 33 balls against Karnataka. His innings helped Jharkhand post a total of 412/9. This performance pushed Suryavanshi's record down to fourth place on the Indian list for fastest centuries in List A cricket. Notably, Kishan missed Gani's record by a ball.
Information
A look at Gani's stats
Sakibul Gani, a 26-year-old right-handed batter from Bihar, is closing in on 1,000 List A runs. In 34 matches (32 innings), the Bihar captain has raced to 995 runs at an average of around 30. This was his third List A ton.