PTI:18/01/2015: AB de Villiers has cemented his status as the world's premier limited-overs batsman by leading South Africa to victory with the fastest ODI century in Johannesburg. There were 11.3 overs left in South Africa’s innings as AB de Villiers walked to the crease. Hashim Amla was 114*, South Africa were looking set a score of well over 350 against a West Indies side that were short of wicket taking ideas. De Villiers had other ideas, 350 was nowhere near enough.
In-between innings Hashim Amla said that de Villiers said he would “have a look” for an over when he arrived at the crease. He then hit his first ball for four, driven down the ground with ease. He was on seven not out at the start of the 40th over. Andre Russell was the bowler. A single off the first ball gave us no clue what would come next. De Villiers, back on strike for the third ball of the over smashed the ball over mid-off for four. The next ball went for six, the one after for another four. It was to the last ball of Russell’s over that you started to realise that we were witnessing something special.
Russell bowled a ball that was a regulation delivery outside off stump at about 130kph. De Villiers shuffled outside his off stump, went down on one knee and smashed the ball for six. What the shot is called is open to debate. As he is the one that invented it perhaps it should be for de Villiers to come up with a moniker.
The new record beat New Zealand batsman Corey Anderson's 36-ball knock, also made against the West Indies in 2014.
De Villiers' sensational innings, which saw him caught in the deep for 149 off just 44 balls, catapulted South Africa from an already imposing 1 for 249 in the 39th over to 2 for 439 by the innings' end; the second-highest total in ODI history.
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