The fastest fifty in ODI cricket took 16 balls. AB de Villiers set the mark against West Indies at Johannesburg in January 2015, and West Indies’ Matthew Forde equalled it against Ireland at Dublin in May 2025. India’s record is older still: Ajit Agarkar’s 21-ball fifty against Zimbabwe at Rajkot in December 2000 has stood for more than 25 years.

Krunal Pandya set the record for the fastest fifty on ODI debut, 26 balls against England at Pune in March 2021. Below are all 14 ODI fifties made in 18 balls or fewer, the Indian record list and every Indian who has scored 50 or more in his first ODI.

Fastest fifty in ODIs: every one in 18 balls or fewer

Player Balls Match Venue Date
AB de Villiers 16 South Africa v West Indies Johannesburg 18 Jan 2015
Matthew Forde 16 West Indies v Ireland Dublin 23 May 2025
Sanath Jayasuriya 17 Sri Lanka v Pakistan Singapore 7 Apr 1996
Kusal Perera 17 Sri Lanka v Pakistan Pallekele 15 Jul 2015
Martin Guptill 17 New Zealand v Sri Lanka Christchurch 28 Dec 2015
Liam Livingstone 17 England v Netherlands Amstelveen 17 Jun 2022
Simon O’Donnell 18 Australia v Sri Lanka Sharjah 2 May 1990
Shahid Afridi 18 Pakistan v Sri Lanka Nairobi 4 Oct 1996
Shahid Afridi 18 Pakistan v Netherlands Colombo 21 Sep 2002
Glenn Maxwell 18 Australia v India Bangalore 2 Nov 2013
Shahid Afridi 18 Pakistan v Bangladesh Mirpur 4 Mar 2014
Brendon McCullum 18 New Zealand v England Wellington 20 Feb 2015
Aaron Finch 18 Australia v Sri Lanka Dambulla 31 Aug 2016
Michael Leask 18 Scotland v Papua New Guinea Dubai (DSC) 13 Apr 2022

Source: ESPNcricinfo’s ODI fastest-fifties record, as of 29 September 2026. Balls-to-fifty is only known for innings with ball-by-ball records, so a few early ODIs cannot be counted.

AB de Villiers and Matthew Forde: 16 balls

AB de Villiers reached fifty in 16 balls against West Indies at Johannesburg on 18 January 2015 and went on to a 44-ball 149, with 16 sixes. It remains the fastest hundred in ODIs too (31 balls). South Africa made 439/2, with Hashim Amla and Rilee Rossouw also scoring hundreds, and won by 148 runs.

Matthew Forde matched the 16 balls more than a decade later, against Ireland at Dublin on 23 May 2025. The West Indies all-rounder, batting down the order, hit eight sixes and two fours in his 58.

The 17-ball fifties: Jayasuriya, Perera, Guptill and Livingstone

Sanath Jayasuriya made the first 17-ball fifty, against Pakistan in the Singer Cup final at Singapore on 7 April 1996, on his way to 76. It was the ODI record for almost 19 years. Kusal Perera matched it against Pakistan at Pallekele in July 2015 and Martin Guptill against Sri Lanka at Christchurch that December.

Liam Livingstone is the most recent. Against the Netherlands at Amstelveen on 17 June 2022 he came in late in the innings and finished on 66 not out off 22 balls, with six sixes and six fours, as England made 498/4.

The 18-ball fifties

Simon O’Donnell’s 18-ball fifty against Sri Lanka at Sharjah on 2 May 1990 was the fastest on record until Jayasuriya. Since then seven more fifties have matched the 18 balls: Shahid Afridi (three times), Glenn Maxwell, Brendon McCullum, Aaron Finch and Michael Leask. Afridi’s three came against Sri Lanka in 1996, the Netherlands in 2002 and Bangladesh in 2014; Leask’s, against Papua New Guinea at Dubai in April 2022, is the most recent.

The 19-ball club is bigger: Mark Boucher, Justin Kemp, Brendon McCullum (twice), Chris Gayle, Ross Taylor, David Hussey, Shahid Afridi, Syed Aziz, Anil Sah and Kusal Mendis. At 20 balls come Shahid Afridi (twice), Brendon McCullum, Daren Sammy, Richie Berrington, Corey Anderson, Angelo Mathews and Kusal Mendis.

Fastest fifty in ODIs for India: Ajit Agarkar, 21 balls

No Indian has reached an ODI fifty in fewer than 21 balls. Ajit Agarkar did it against Zimbabwe at Rajkot on 14 December 2000, and finished on 67 not out. Four more Indians have done it in 22 balls, the most recent Yuvraj Singh in 2004.

Player Balls Opposition Venue Date
Ajit Agarkar 21 Zimbabwe Rajkot 14 Dec 2000
Kapil Dev 22 West Indies Berbice 29 Mar 1983
Virender Sehwag 22 Kenya Paarl 24 Oct 2001
Rahul Dravid 22 New Zealand Hyderabad 15 Nov 2003
Yuvraj Singh 22 Bangladesh Dhaka 27 Dec 2004

Fastest fifty on ODI debut: Krunal Pandya, 26 balls

Krunal Pandya set the record for the fastest fifty on ODI debut against England at Pune on 23 March 2021. Coming in at No. 7, he reached fifty in 26 balls and finished on 58 not out off 31 balls, with seven fours and two sixes.

Indians with a fifty on ODI debut

17 Indians have scored 50 or more in their first ODI. Brijesh Patel and Ajit Wadekar did it in India’s very first ODI, at Leeds in 1974; the most recent is Sai Sudharsan, with 55 not out against South Africa at Johannesburg in December 2023. KL Rahul is the only one to turn his debut innings into a hundred.

Player Score Opposition Venue Date
Ajit Wadekar 67 England Leeds 13 Jul 1974
Brijesh Patel 82 England Leeds 13 Jul 1974
Sandeep Patil 64 Australia Melbourne 6 Dec 1980
Raman Lamba 64 Australia Jaipur 7 Sep 1986
Navjot Singh Sidhu 73 Australia Chennai 9 Oct 1987
Pravin Amre 55 South Africa Eden Gardens 10 Nov 1991
Saba Karim 55 South Africa Bloemfontein 23 Jan 1997
Amay Khurasiya 57 Sri Lanka Pune 30 Mar 1999
Robin Uthappa 86 England Indore 15 Apr 2006
Ravindra Jadeja 60* Sri Lanka Colombo (RPS) 8 Feb 2009
Ambati Rayudu 63* Zimbabwe Harare 24 Jul 2013
Manish Pandey 71 Zimbabwe Harare 14 Jul 2015
KL Rahul 100* Zimbabwe Harare 11 Jun 2016
Faiz Fazal 55* Zimbabwe Harare 15 Jun 2016
Krunal Pandya 58* England Pune 23 Mar 2021
Ishan Kishan 59 Sri Lanka Colombo (RPS) 18 Jul 2021
Sai Sudharsan 55* South Africa Johannesburg 17 Dec 2023

Source: ESPNcricinfo Statsguru, India ODI innings of 50 or more, checked against each player’s first ODI.

For the fastest fifties in Tests, T20Is and first-class cricket, see our fastest fifty in cricket history guide.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Punit Paranjpe