Here’s the list of Top 10 highest individual scores in T20I:
10. Brendon McCullum – 116* vs (Australia 2010)
It was one of the best T20 matches ever played in February 2010 between the arch rivals Australia and New Zealand as Brendon McCullum, the man who has got the knack of scoring big runs, capped off another brilliant knock of 116 which included 12 boundaries and 8 big ones.
The match eventually went into eliminator as New Zealand clinched the one-over thriller. One of the best innings among the many from the Kiwis skipper and also the first one for his side in the T-20’s.
9. Alex Hales – 116* vs (Sri Lanka 2014)
England Cricket team has probably been the last one to come to terms with the attacking brand of cricket that T-20 has brought about in the past few years.
Alex Hales has been one of the important players for the Three Lions in the shortest format of Cricket who has been a part/catalyst of this change. His knock of 116 not out that helped England chase down a total of 189 in the T-20 World Cup last year was a brilliant effort by the man who is now a regular member of the England squad.
8. Chris Gayle – 117 vs (South Africa 2007)
The man had to enter somewhere in the list and the fact that he was the first one to score a century in the shortest format should be no surprise either.
Christopher Henry Gayle is the most entertaining batsman in this form of Cricket as any Cricket fan would tell you. His Century against South Africa in the first ever T-20 World Cup that included 10 big ones probably changed the way this game was played however, the Caribbean’s managed to lose that game by 8 wickets. Still, the big man is well respected in this format and is definitely the hardest hitter of the Cricket ball.
7. Richard Levi – 117* vs (New Zealand 2012)
An unexpected entry in this list, Richard Levi’s career never took off as expected after he played one of the most entertaining knocks in T-20 Cricket by scoring 117 not out in just 51 balls. The innings included just 5 fours but a mammoth 13 big ones as the Proteas opener rewrote the history book in 2012 just to disappear from the grand stage after that. If you are T20 fan, you shouldn’t miss this innings for the pure entertainment it provides.
6. Mohammad Shahzad – 118* vs (Zimbabwe 2016)
Opening the innings for the Aghan team in the 2nd T20I of the 2-match series between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe at the UAE Mohammad Shahzad played one of the finest knocks we have seen in the format of international cricket thus far. He came out with unidirectional intentions that to dismantle the opposition bowlers and give them no chance of gaining an upper hand. Shahzad faced just 67 balls in his innings and scored 118 runs. It took him 52 balls to get to the triple figures, he stayed unbeaten at the end and became the second batsman ever to carry his bat in T20Is. His blazing innings was garnished with 10 boundaries and 8 sixes, he played with a strike rate of 176.11. In the end it was his special that helped Afghanistan clean sweep Zimbabwe 2-0 and register another famous win.
5. Faf du Plessis – 119 vs (West Indies 2015)
The payback? As you can see on the list, Chris Gayle scored the first ever T20 century against South Africa in the T20 World Cup just to watch his team lose the match rather disappointingly. This time, though it was West Indies who came away as the winner after the Proteas Skipper Francois Du Plessis scored a brilliant knock of 119 of just 56 balls. The knock included 11 boundaries and 5 sixes, but it wasn’t enough to win his team the game.
4. Brendon McCullum – 123 vs (Bangladesh
The only man to enter this list twice! That says it all about him, doesn’t it!
New-Zealand Skipper scored his second T-20 Century against Bangladesh in 2012 as he scored 123 runs of just 58 balls which included 11 fours and 7 sixes. Obviously the Kiwis went on to win the game by a big margin as they usually do when McCullum is in form.
3. Shane Watson – 124* vs (India in 2016)
Shane Watson played a vintage knock against India during the 3rd T20I. The brawny all-rounder looked unstoppable and pummelled each and every Indian bowler. Watson, who was the stand-in skipper that match opened the innings and went on to score the second highest individual score in T20Is. His sparkling inning was studded with 10 four and 6 powerful sixes. It took him just 60 balls to reach his century and finished unbeaten in the end at 124 runs off just 71 balls. Australia posted a formidable 197/5 with the help of his century. However, it was unfortunate that his century went in vain after the Aussies lost the intense game by 7 wickets.
2. Glenn Maxwell – 145* vs (Sri Lanka in 2016)
Glenn Maxwell opened the innings for the first time for Australia and played his career-defining knock. Maxi went on to post 65-ball 145 runs, the 2nd highest ever individual score in T20Is. Australia also posted the highest ever team total (263/3) going past Sri Lanka’s 260-run score. Maxwell’s innings came at a strike-rate of 223.08 with 14 fours & 9 sixes.
Glenn Maxwell also posted the fourth fastest T20I century and the second fastest among the Australian players reaching the century in just 49 balls. Maxi now also holds the record of hitting second individual score in T20Is after Aaron Finch.
1. Aaron Finch – 156 vs (England in 2013)
Aaron Finch had been at the helms for quite some time, but the one innings that made him cement his spot at the top of the order in the shorter format of the game was his mammoth knock of 156 in 2013 that, to this date, remains the highest individual score in T-20 Internationals by any player.
The innings included a staggering 11 fours and 14 sixes as the Aussie took the Pommies to the cleaners, hitting them to every part of the ground. This inning definitely deserve to be at the top of this list.