Chris Gayle is one of the most prolific batsmen the world has ever seen, especially in the T20 format. As the 'Universe Boss' celebrates his 42nd birthday, we look at his six best IPL records.
Windies opener Chris Gayle remains one of the cleanest strikers of the ball in world cricket, especially in the Twenty20 format. Over the years, he has cemented his legacy as one of the format's greats, while his records speak for himself.
As a result, Gayle has also been deemed a legend in the Indian Premier League (IPL), having played myriad top knocks to date. While he turns 42 on Tuesday, we take a look at six of the top records he holds in the IPL.
Most IPL centuries
Between 2011-17, Gayle was on top form. Playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), he scaled glorious heights. Consequently, he has scored six centuries in the tournament to date, which is the most by any player, while next to him is his former RCB teammate and skipper Virat Kohli (5).
Most IPL 99s
In an interesting stat, Gayle has been dismissed twice while batting on 99. Incidentally, it is also the most by any batsman in the competition.
Best run-scoring average and strike rate
In one of the unique records held by Gayle, he and AB de Villiers are the only batsmen in the tournament to have scored more than 4,500 runs at an average of more than 40.00 and possess a strike rate of over 150.00. Gayle's current average and S/R are 40.2 and 149.4, respectively, while de Villiers betters him, with 40.4 and 152.3 each.
Fastest to 4k
Gayle also scored the fastest 4,000 runs in the competition, having done so in 112 innings during IPL 2019. He has presently achieved 4,950 runs and is 50 short of becoming the sixth batsman to enter the 5k club.
ALSO READ: Virat Kohli reveals how he overcame persistent back issues
First to hit 300 sixes
Gayle holds the record of having hit the most sixes in the tournament (357). Also, he is the first and only batsman to have smashed 300 sixes in the competition, with de Villiers next to him (245).
Best knock
Gayle holds an outstanding record of playing the best IPL knock, scoring an unbeaten 175. It happened in IPL 2013 while playing against Pune Warriors India (PWI) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, as RCB posted a mammoth 263/5 and won the game by a massive margin of 130 runs.
NOTE: Asianet News humbly requests everyone to wear masks, sanitise, maintain social distancing and get vaccinated as soon as eligible. Together we can and will break the chain #ANCares #IndiaFightsCorona