OTD | Viv Richards hit the fastest recorded Test century at the time which stood for 30 years in 1986

In today’s highly-paced cricketing era strike rate is something that excites fans. In the modern era of cricket, things are just going short and paced at the same time. However, almost two decades before the introduction of T20 cricket there was a man who showcased the glimpses of it to the world.

On this day in 1986, West Indies was facing England in the fifth Test of the series at Antigua. After winning the first four games, the hosts were keen to sweep the visitors. After being asked to bat first West Indies posted a massive total of 474 runs in the first innings. Star opener Desmond Haynes scored a century to position the host comfortably.

In response, England was bowled out for just 310 runs thanks to Joel Garner who took four wickets for the West Indies. With a hefty lead of 164 runs in the first innings West Indies was looking for someone to score quick runs to again bowl out England and register a clean sweep.

Vivian Richards stole the show!

This was the moment when local boy Viv Richards stood up and took charge. His amazing batting display shattered the English bowling lineup as he scored the fastest Test century of that time. Richards in his innings scored a century in just 56 balls. His final score was 110 runs off 58 balls with the help of seven boundaries and as many sixes.

Richards smashed both spinners and fast bowlers all over the field with incredible power and skill, unlike anything seen before. England’s bowlers, including Ian Botham and others, couldn’t stop him. His record for the fastest Test century was later broken by Brendon McCullum from New Zealand in 2016.

His amazing batting display helped West Indies to declare their innings with a total of 246/2 on board. The target was 410 for the English team which they failed to achieve as they were dismissed for just 170 runs. West Indies won the game by 240 runs and the series by 5-0 but the major attraction was Richards’ iconic innings.