Aiden Markram hits fastest World Cup ton as South Africa register highest total in tournament's history
Markram hits fastest CWC ton as Proteas hammer Sri Lanka with historic score
A flurry of Cricket World Cup records went down the drain as South Africa posted 428 for five – the highest team total in the tournament’s history. Alongside this, Aiden Markram also recorded the fastest hundred by a batter in just 49 balls in CWC.
Asked to bat first after losing the toss, Sri Lanka got the Protean Captain Temba Bavuma trapped in front early on seven. Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen began the onslaught from the word go as South Africa looked determined to go all-out in this match. The left-right combination worked wonders for the team as they kept finding gaps at will.
In the absence of the star spin duo of Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga (who is out of the World Cup with an injury), the Sri Lanka Team had Dunith Wellalage and Dhananjaya de Silva as their spin-bowling options, both of whom went for runs.
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Playing his last World Cup, De Kock left no stone unturned in his efforts to maximise his chances of scoring big when it matters. While van der Dussen looked like reaching the three-digit mark in the first place, de Kock’s super-aggressive approach saw him complete the first hundred for his team in this World Cup. De Kock departed soon after, while Van der Dussen hit his maiden hundred of this edition.
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However, the real action began after that, as Aiden Markram, another Protean in form, alongside Heinrich Klaasen – perhaps the most-sorted player of spin bowling in world cricket, broke Sri Lanka’s back with their power hitting.
Markram, who came off from a brilliant home series against Australia, upped the striking rate and hit each bowler to all parts of the ground. Before many could realise, he was in his nineties and soon after reached a World Cup hundred in just 49 balls – the fastest in the tournament’s history.
In the meantime, Klaasen had lost his wicket, while David Miller and Marco Jansen took over the proceedings in the final overs.
South Africa crossed the 400-run-mark for the third time in the tournament’s history, becoming the first team to do so, as they posted a gigantic 428 for five in 50 overs.
For Sri Lanka to win this match, they need to score 429 runs.
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