Loftie-Eaton smashes fastest T20I hundred

Namibia's left-handed batsman Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton hammered the fastest T20 International century, off 33 balls, on Tuesday (February 27, 2024), bettering the record set by Kushal Malla last year at the Asian Games in Hangzhou.

The 22-year-old Namibian, who will turn 23 on March 15, hit 11 fours and eight sixes, finishing with 101 off 36 balls that helped Namibia beat host Nepal by 20 runs in the first match of the Nepal Tri-Nation T20I series at Kirtipur.

Batting first, Namibia scored 206/4 in 20 overs before bowling out Nepal for 186 in 18.5 overs.

The left-handed batsman has studied in South Africa's Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch and showed power that reminded one of David Miller.

Loftie-Eaton had debuted in first class cricket just a month before he was to turn 18 in South Africa's domestic competition, the Sunfoil 3-day Cup, for Namibia against eventual champions KwaZulu Natal and till date that remains his only first-class game.

It was a tournament where the Namibians tried multiple wicketkeepers in 10 league matches and the final.

After failing against NwaZulu Natal, he was dropped but found a calling in the limited overs cricket.

This was, however, his first score of 50-plus in 33 T20 Internationals, in which he now averages under 16. He has six half-centuries in 36 ODIs.

List of fastest T20I hundreds:

1) Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton (33 balls) (Namibia)

2) Kushal Malla (34 balls) (Nepal)

3) David Miller (South Africa); Rohit Sharma (India); and Sudesh Wickramasekara (Czech Republic) (35 balls)

4) Sivakumar Periyalwar (Romania); Zeeshan Kukikhel (Hungary); and Johnson Charles (West Indies) (39 balls) 

Cricket, T20, Namibia, Fastest century, Nepal, T20I