3 records of AB de Villiers that might not be broken in the near future

AB de Villiers, the swashbuckling South African batsman announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket on 23rd May 2018. The news came as a shock for the cricket fraternity and was a cause of distress among the cricket fans.

The South African is loved by cricket fans all over the world and has developed an emotional connection with the fans especially in India. ABD who is one of the most feared batsmen in the world enjoyed a highly successful career that lasted nearly 14 years.

In the wake of his retirement here are a few records which are held by him and are unlikely to be broken in the near future:

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#3 Most number of centuries scored under 60 balls in ODIs (4)

Scoring a century in less than 60 balls in a fifty over-game is a daunting task and only 14 players have been able to achieve the feat so far. Only 14 players in close to 50 years of ODI cricket history is surprising to see and it is enough to define the difficulty of the achievement.

Only 3 players have been able to achieve the feat more than once. AB de Villiers leads the list of most number of centuries scored under 60 balls in ODIs with 4 centuries. Shahid Afridi is 2nd with 3 centuries and Sanath Jayasuriya is 3rd with 2 centuries.

Ironically, the world's most devastating batsman, Chris Gayle has not been able to score an ODI ton under 60 balls, his fastest came in 69 balls. In an era of T20 cricket, predictions are bound to fail but the statistics have a different say and it is unlikely that this record is going to be broken anytime soon.

#2 Fastest ODI Century (31 balls)

AB de Villiers shocked the world when he reached the hundred run mark in just 31 balls against West Indies at Wanderers in 2015. He scored 16 sixes and 9 fours in an innings that ended on 149 off 44 balls.

ABD came in the 39th over of the match and looked furious from the very first ball he faced, hitting West Indian bowlers for huge sixes all over the ground. On the way, he scored the fastest ODI half-century which came in just 16 balls and took 15 more deliveries to create a world record, which is commendable.

Shahid Afridi was the first player to score an ODI ton under 40 balls. He scored the hundred in just 37 balls against Sri Lanka in 1996 and the record looked unbreakable until Corey Anderson broke it after nearly 17 years. The New Zealand batsman scored the ton in 37 balls, one ball faster than Afridi. But, the record of 31 balls set by AB de Villiers is superman stuff and it is likely that the record may never be broken.

#1 Fastest ODI 150 ( 64 balls)

One of AB de Villiers' finest innings came against West Indies in the 2015 World Cup held in Australia. Against a weak West Indian bowling attack, AB de Villiers scored a quickfire 150 off just 64 balls. He reached the 100 run mark in just 52 balls and took 12 more balls to add another 50 runs. He returned not out on a score of 162 off 66 balls that included 17 fours and 8 sixes.

Scoring a 150 in ODI cricket is a tough milestone to breach in itself and scoring it off 64 deliveries is just incredible. Only 5 players have been able to reach the 150 run mark in under 100 balls.

AB de Villiers bettered Shane Watson's record by 19 balls and the huge difference shows the difficulty of the record. New Zealander Luke Ronchi reached the 150 run mark in 92 balls and is third on the list.

Reaching the milestone in 64 balls is not everyone's cup of tea and the record is unlikely to be broken for decades.