Since 2007, only 11 players have managed to score a century or two in the tournament
The ninth edition of the ICC T20 World Cup is in progress, and the majority of the eyes will be on batsmen given the bombastic Indian Premier League (IPL) recently concluded—a tournament with 1,000 sixes. Not to forget, the tournament also witnessed as many as 13 sixes. Therefore, fresh off the IPL, the batsmen who played in India's domestic T20 league will hope to replicate the same type of hitting in the T20 World Cup.
Unfortunately, the T20 World Cup is much more competitive than the IPL, and it must be noted that since 2007, only nine players have managed to score one century each, whereas two centuries belong to one player, taking the total number of T20 World Cup centuries to 11. So, who is this one player with two centuries in the tournament?
Two decades ago, as the world was evolving at a much faster pace, cricket also needed to be a little bit faster than the traditional ODI and Test formats. With the aim to lure young generation fans towards cricket who did not have much time to watch cricket throughout the day, the T20 format and the T20 World Cup were turned into a reality.
On September 11, 2007, the West Indies met South Africa in the first-ever match of the T20 World Cup, and on that very day, Chris Gayle created a record that has remained intact to date. In the face of a fierce bowling onslaught from South Africa, Gayle let loose with an incredible show of power-hitting. His explosive stroke of 117 runs in just 57 balls stunned the opposition and helped the West Indies reach a dominant total. With ten massive sixes, seven boundaries during his innings, and a strike rate of 205.26, Gayle cemented his status as one of the T20 format's most lethal batters.
Unfortunately, while Gayle shocked everyone with his batting, South Africa further shocked the cricket world by chasing the target in merely 11.7 overs.
On March 16, 2016, the West Indies clashed with England in the Super 10 Group 1 at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. England had made a decent score of 182 runs by losing only six wickets. However, Gayle was there to thwart England's hopes. Opening with Johnson Carles, Gayle turned his batting into the famous "Gayle Storm" and scored an unbeaten 100 runs off just 48 deliveries. His innings were punctuated by a staggering 11 sixes and five boundaries, leaving the English bowlers helpless and the crowd in awe. The match was over for England in the 18.1 overs as the West Indies managed to reach the target.
Coincidentally, once again, the West Indies clashed with England in the final and defeated them again to win their second T20 World Cup title, having won the first in 2012.
The former West Indies hitter played 31 T20 World Cup matches in his career, amassing 965 runs. Throughout his career, he maintained a strike rate of 142.75 and an average of 34.46. Apart from two centuries, Gayle also added seven half centuries. Last but not least, Gayle managed ten wickets with the ball.
