On This Day: When Gayle storm blew away Pune Warriors

Chris Gayle thrashed a hapless Pune Warriors bowling as he posted the highest individual score of 175 not out in 66 balls and the fastest ton of the format in 30 balls.

Chris Gayle raises his bat after reaching his hundred in 30 balls against Pune Warriors India.

Chris Gayle rewrote history books on April 23, 2013, with one of the most brutal knocks as he raced away to a breathtaking century off just 30 balls.

Batting for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), the big-hitting Jamaican went after Pune Warriors India's bowlers clobbering 13 boundaries and 17 massive sixes to post an unbeaten 175 off 66 balls - the highest individual score in T20s.

 

The southpaw also reached the fastest century in the format in just 30 balls when he smoked Ashoke Dinda over the roof for a maximum at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Opening the innings with Tilakaratne Dilshan, Gayle began the onslaught in the second over by hitting IPL novice Ishwar Pandey for five boundaries.

He then clobbered Mitchell Marsh for four sixes followed with a  boundary and looted Ali Murtaza for 16 runs as RCB reached 80/0 in 7 overs.

 

With none of his plans working, Pune captain Aaron Finch took it on himself to stop Gayle only to get smashed for four sixes and four in the eighth over.

Batting on 96 off 29 balls, Gayle hit the roof off Dinda's free-hit delivery to better the fastest records of Andrew Symonds' 34-ball T20 ton and Yusuf Pathan's 37-ball IPL hundred.

The West Indies batsman ran just four singles in the next two overs, before resuming his blitzkrieg with a six off Luke Wright.

Left-armer Murtaza was once again taken to the cleaners when Gayle hit 28 off the spinner's 15th over. The Warriors got the wickets of Dilsham and Virat Kohli but there was no room for joy as Gayle hit Bhuvneshwar Kumar for three boundaries to take his score to 166 from just 61 balls.

AB de Villiers piled more misery at the end with a breezy 31 off 12 balls as Gayle added one more six in the final over to take RCB to 263/5 in 20 overs - the highest team total in T20s at that time. Gayle also claimed 2-5 with his off-break as Pune managed 133/9 in 20 overs.

There were many memorable innings in the IPL, but that Tuesday night assault by the "Universe Boss" remains seared into the minds of the cricket viewers.