Scoring a century in a T20 match is not everyone’s cup of tea, especially in the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to its high-octane atmosphere.
Over 100 centuries by 50+ different batsmen in a tournament spanning more than 18 years is a testimony to that fact. Virat Kohli tops the chart with eight IPL centuries so far, followed by Jos Buttler with seven.
Out of those who have crossed the three-figure mark in the tournament, 11 of them have done it for two different franchises.
Let’s see them all one by one:
1. Adam Gilchrist – KXIP & DC
The legendary Australian wicket-keeper batsman was the first to achieve this rare feat when he scored 106 off 55 balls against Royal Challengers Bangalore while playing for Kings XI Punjab during the 2011 season in the IPL. The knock consisted of 8 fours and 9 sixes, which took Punjab’s total to 232/2. The RCB line-up succumbed to a paltry total of 121, handing a mammoth 111-run victory to KXIP.
The first century by Gilchrist was actually scored in the very first season while playing for Deccan Chargers. He annihilated the Mumbai Indians line-up in front of their home fans on his way to a lightning knock of unbeaten 109 in meagre 47 balls. His blistering knock with a strike rate well above 230 assured the victory for his side.
2. Virender Sehwag – DD & KXIP
The Nawab of Najafgarh has 2 centuries to his name in the IPL. His first one came in 2011 while playing for Delhi Daredevils, while the second one came in 2014 while playing for Kings XI Punjab.
Chasing a stiff total of 176 against Deccan Chargers during the 2011 season, Virender Sehwag led the charge for Delhi with a dominating knock of 119 facing just 56 deliveries. With 13 fours and 6 sixes in his glorious knock, he completely took the Chargers out of the game.
Three years later, Viru replicated that performance by scoring another match-winning century against the Chennai Super Kings, led by MS Dhoni. During the second qualifier match of the 2014 season, Sehwag played a magnificent knock to ensure a great total on the board for Kings XI Punjab. He scored 122 (58) to take the Punjab total to 226/6. KXIP went on to win the match by 24 runs and booked their spot in the finals.
3. Brendon McCullum – KKR & CSK
Brendon McCullum is an unforgettable name in the IPL as he was the one who started it all. His incredible knock of 158 unbeaten off 73 balls kick-started the tournament with an absolute bang. While playing for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Bazz took complete control of the RCB bowling attack, smashing 10 fours and 13 sixes. KKR defeated RCB by a huge margin of 140 runs on the back of McCullum’s surreal performance in a match where the next best score was 20.
His second hundred came against Sunrisers Hyderabad during the 2015 season while playing for Chennai Super Kings. Batting first, CSK put a total of 209 for 4 in their allotted 20 overs on the back of an unbeaten 100 of 56 balls by Brendon. CSK won the match by 45 runs as Brendon McCullum undoubtedly was the Man of the Match.
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4. AB De Villiers – DD & RCB
Playing for Delhi Daredevils during the second edition of the tournament, De Villiers smashed 105 not out, facing 54 deliveries against Chennai Super Kings. De Villiers’ performance, which consisted of 5 fours and 6 sixes, took Delhi to a formidable score of 189/5. Delhi won the match by 9 runs and AB was quite rightly adjudged the Man of the Match.
After that, ABD scored two more centuries in IPL, both for Royal Challengers Bangalore. His first of two centuries for RCB came during the 2015 season, where he absolutely belted the Mumbai Indians bowling attack with his 360 range of stroke-making. He scored an unbeaten 133 off just 59 balls, spearheading the 39-run victory for his team.
The last of De Villiers’ IPL centuries was scored a year after the previous one against the now-defunct Gujarat Lions. He smashed 10 fours and 12 sixes on his way to a 52-ball 129*. With twin centuries from Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers, RCB went on to post a commanding total of 248/1 in the first innings and defeated the Lions from Gujarat by a huge margin of 144 runs.
5. David Warner – DD & SRH
David Warner is one of the only two players to have scored two centuries for two different franchises, with the other being his countryman, Shane Watson. He scored his first hundred for Delhi Daredevils in 2010 against Kolkata Knight Riders. His 107 not out off 69 balls, comprising 9 fours and 5 sixes, paid dividends as Delhi triumphed by 40 runs.
His second century came two years later when Delhi faced off against Deccan Chargers. Chasing a challenging total of 188 to win, David Warner laid the foundation as well as took the team over the line with an unbeaten 109 off 54 balls. He struck 10 fours and 7 sixes on his way to a memorable knock.
Warner notched up his third IPL century, first for Sunrisers Hyderabad, during the 2017 season in the league match against Kolkata Knight Riders. He scored 126 off 59 balls with 10 fours and 8 sixes. His masterful knock assured a victory of 48 runs for the Orange Army.
Two years later, Warner ed forces with Jonny Bairstow to make the then-highest opening stand in the tournament’s history as the duo added 185 runs. David finished unbeaten on exactly 100 off 55 balls as Sunrisers scored 231 for the loss of two wickets. The target was too much for Royal Challengers Bangalore as they handed Sunrisers a victory of 118 runs.
6. Chris Gayle – RCB & KXIP
Chris Gayle once held the IPL record for scoring the most centuries, with six hundreds to his name. Out of the six three-figure scores, he scored five of them for Royal Challengers Bangalore whereas one for Kings XI Punjab.
He scored his maiden IPL century back in 2011 for RCB against his previous franchise, KKR. The big-hitter from Jamaica took matters into his own hands in the chase of 172. He remained unbeaten on 102 off 54 balls as RCB won the match by 9 wickets.
Just a few days after his first hundred, Gayle scored one more, this time against Kings XI Punjab. He smashed 10 fours and 9 sixes in his 49-ball 107 as RCB amassed 205/6 and went on to win the game by 85 runs.
Batting first during a league match in 2012, Royal Challengers put up a dominating total of 215 for the loss of one wicket against Delhi Daredevils. The destroyer-in-chief for RCB was yet again Christopher Henry Gayle. He stayed unbeaten on 128 off meagre 62 balls, smashing as many as 13 sixes and made the victory easier for his team.
Chris Gayle played the greatest IPL knock during the 2013 season when he smashed the Pune Warriors India bowling line-up with absolute demolition. He recorded the highest individual score in IPL history when he amassed 175* runs off 66 balls with 13 fours and 17 sixes. His knock propelled RCB to the then highest score in the IPL (263/5) and they want on to win the game by 130 runs.
His final century for Kohli’s brigade was scored in 2015 when he took apart the bowling attack of Kings XI Punjab. Batting first, Gayle hit 12 sixes on course to a score of 117, facing 57 deliveries. RCB notched up 226 for the loss of 3 wickets and defeated the Punjab team by a huge margin of 138 runs.
After switching from RCB to KXIP, Gayle scored his first century in the 2018 season against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. He scored 104 not out off 63 balls with just one four and 11 sixes. KXIP, by virtue of his knock, scored 193/3 and won the match by 15 runs.
7. Shane Watson – RR & CSK
As aforementioned, Watson has scored two centuries for two different franchises in the IPL. His first two centuries were for Rajasthan Royals.
During the 2013 season, Watson scored his maiden IPL century. He smashed 6 fours and equal sixes to get to 101 off 61 deliveries and took RR’s total to 185/4. Despite his valiant efforts, RR couldn’t cross the finishing line as CSK chased down the target with just one ball to spare.
In a high-scoring thriller between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals, Watson’s fiery knock paid dividends for the latter as Rajasthan went on to win it by 9 runs. Watson’s knock consisted of 9 fours and 5 sixes.
Watto was picked by CSK for the 2018 season and he repaid the faith by scoring two centuries in the tournament. The first one was against his old allies Rajasthan Royals. He scored 107 off 57 balls to take the Super Kings to 204/5 at the end of 20 overs. CSK triumphed over the Royals by 64 runs.
While his century in the league match was quite good, the best one was still reserved for the grand finale. Chasing a tough target of 179 with the pressure of a final on his shoulders, he scored a magnificent 117 not out with a strike rate well over 200 as the chase unfolded quite convincingly. CSK won the final by 8 wickets, and Shane Watson was the Man of the Match.
8. Sanju Samson – DD & RR
