Shanaka’s hundred took 39 balls, and Hetmyer’s share of the CPL record lasted three days
Dasun Shanaka came in at 89 for 2 in the 10th over at Warner Park and finished unbeaten on 121 from 43 balls. His hundred took 39 deliveries, one fewer than the mark Shimron Hetmyer had equalled three days earlier.
Sep 4, 2026
Dasun Shanaka walked out at Warner Park in the 10th over with St Kitts and Nevis Patriots on 89 for 2. He was still there at the end of it, 121 not out from 43 balls, and the fastest century in Caribbean Premier League history belonged to him.
Thirty-nine balls
Johnson Charles fell for 26 at 9.2 overs and Shanaka replaced him. The hundred arrived 39 deliveries later. He finished with eight fours and 12 sixes at a strike rate of 281.40, and Andre Fletcher’s 64 from 38 at the other end became the second story of the innings almost immediately.
Until Thursday the CPL record was 40 balls, shared by Andre Russell, Tim Seifert and Shimron Hetmyer. Hetmyer had only just joined that list. On 31 August, in his 100th CPL appearance, he made 111 not out off 43 in a rain-shortened 16-over game at Port of Spain and Guyana Amazon Warriors beat Trinbago Knight Riders by nine runs on DLS. His share of the record survived three days.
Shanaka turns 35 on 9 September. He has built his white-ball reputation as a finisher, the man who arrives late with a target to close out and a handful of overs to do it in. Given ten overs and a platform instead, he produced an innings the finisher’s job almost never allows.
Then Jeremiah Louis took five for 10
Saint Lucia Kings needed 236. Tim Seifert made 50 from 36 and nobody else in the innings passed 11. They were bowled out for 98 in 13.5 overs.
Jeremiah Louis did most of the damage, finishing with 5 for 10 from 2.5 overs, Roston Chase caught and bowled among them. Wanindu Hasaranga finished with 2 for 25 from his four, Ashmead Nedd 2 for 24, Naseem Shah 1 for 17. The Kings had already had a rough evening with the ball: Keon Gaston’s four overs cost 66, Maheesh Theekshana and Matthew Forde 48 each.
What the 137 runs are worth
The Patriots went into the match fifth on seven points from eight games. The win takes them to nine. The Kings, who started the night level on points with Jamaica Kingsmen and Guyana Amazon Warriors, stay on eight and have now played nine.
Guyana Amazon Warriors have four wins from four and games in hand, and five of the seven teams sit inside three points of each other. In a group that tight, a 137-run margin is a useful thing to be carrying around. Shanaka’s 12 sixes may end up worth more than the two points.