List of World's Fastest 50 in Cricket: ODIs, T20s and Tests

Dipendra Singh Airee of Nepal has scored the world’s fastest 50 in cricket, bringing up his half-century in just nine balls against Mongolia during the 2023 Asian Games. Airee broke Yuvraj Singh’s 16-year-old record in the process, as Nepal went on to win that match by a whopping 273 runs.

The record for scoring the fastest fifty in ODI cricket is held by former South Africa captain AB de Villiers. He scored it against the West Indies in 2015 as the Proteas went on to post a mammoth total of 439 runs in Johannesburg.

In the longest format, former Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has scored the fastest half-century while playing against Australia in 2014. Pakistan went on to beat the Aussies by a huge 356-run margin.

Dipendra Singh Airee | Nepal vs Mongolia

Airee had come to bat at the best possible time against Mongolia. When Nepal skipper Rohit Paudel got out in the 19th over, Nepal had already accumulated a massive 259 runs with 11 balls remaining. Coming in at number 5, Airee would hit five consecutive sixes before adding three more in the last over to create the record.    

Ashutosh Sharma | Railways vs Andhra Pradesh

Dipendra Singh Airee is followed by Ashutosh Sharma, who took two more balls to reach his half-century while playing against Arunachal Pradesh in the 2023 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy group match in Ranchi. Coming to bat at number 6, Sharma hit one boundary and eight sixes to bring up his 50 in 11 balls. Railways won that match by 127 runs.
Yuvraj Singh | India vs England

Yuvraj Singh sits third on the list with his heroic feat against England in the 2007 T20 World Cup. Batting first, Yuvraj would come at number five to hit Stuart Broad for six sixes in an over to pretty much decide the outcome even before England came out to chase a target of 219.

Chris Gayle | Melbourne Renegades vs Adelaide Striker

No T20 record is complete without Chris Gayle’s mention in itT20 cricket’s first freelancer. Playing for Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League 2016 season, he matched Yuvraj’s record of scoring 50 in 12 balls while chasing 171 runs against Adelaide Strikers.

Hazratullah Zazai | Kabul Zwanan vs Balkh Legends

Though Hazratullah Zazai’s 50 came at a losing cause, the opener had given a glimmer of hope for his Afghanistan Premier League side Kabul Zwanan, who were chasing a steep target of 245 runs set by Balkh Legends in 2018.

AB de Villiers | South Africa vs West Indies

It was one of those days for West Indies when nothing worked for them and everything went in favour of South Africa in Johannesburg in 2015. All the three top-order batsmen - Hashim Amla, Riley Rossouw and AB de Villiers - had scored centuries. However, ABD stole the limelight with a stupendous 16-ball-50 coming at number 3. South Africa posted a target of 440 and won the match by 148 runs. 

Sanath Jayasuriya | Sri Lanka vs Pakistan

Long before openers had started exploiting the field restrictions of the opening overs, it was Sri Lanka’s Sanath Jayasuriya who had made it a habit. Facing Pakistan in the 1996 Singer Cup, the explosive southpaw would score a lightning-quick 17-ball-50 while chasing 215 runs set by Pakistan. The Lankans, however, would eventually lose the match.

Kusal Perera | Sri Lanka vs Pakistan

Jayasuriya is followed by his compatriot Kusal Perera, yet another aggressive opener. Hosting Pakistan for a five-match ODI series, Perera’s 17-ball-50 early in the innings saw Sri Lanka chase down a target of 287 runs in 48.1 overs.

Martin Guptill | New Zealand vs Sri Lanka

Sitting fourth on this list is New Zealand opener Martin Guptill, who also brought up his 50 in 17 balls in one of the most one-sided matches ever. Touring New Zealand for a five-match ODI series in 2015, Sri Lanka was wrapped up for 117 runs in 28 overs. Guptill and Latham chased it down in just eight overs.

Liam Livingstone | England vs Netherlands

Touring the Netherlands for a three-match ODI series, England were always the favourites. But, nothing prepared the hosts for the absolute carnage that England produced in the second ODI. Batting first, England had Phil Salt, David Malan and Jos Buttler all score centuries to set up a mammoth total. The team needed some icing on the cake, which was produced by Liam Livingstone coming to bat at number six. His 17-ball-50 saw England post a total of 499 runs in 50 overs. They won the match by 232 runs.