Phil Salt recorded the fastest century by an England men’s batter, scoring a 39-ball 100 in the second T20I against South Africa at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Friday, September 12. Salt, who had made a golden duck and dropped a catch in England’s rain-affected series-opening defeat in Cardiff earlier this week, bounced back in style with a breathtaking 141 off just 60 balls, including 15 fours and 8 sixes, at a strike rate of 235. Harry Brook’s crucial 41 off 21 balls also powered England to a massive total of 304 for 2 in 20 overs against the Proteas.
Salt surpassed Liam Livingstone’s record, who had reached his century off 42 balls against Pakistan at Trent Bridge in 2021.
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This knock also made Salt one of the fastest players to reach four T20I hundreds, achieving the mark in just 42 innings—well ahead of India’s Suryakumar Yadav, who took 57 innings. Globally, only Glenn Maxwell and Rohit Sharma have more T20I centuries (five each), placing Salt in elite company.
His record-breaking innings came after a blistering start from Jos Buttler, who smashed 83 off just 30 balls, including an 18-ball fifty—the third-fastest by an England batter in T20Is.
