Luan-dre Pretorius hits unbeaten 188 off 79 balls, breaking Chris Gayle's T20 record of 175

South Africa's 20-year-old opening batter Luan-dre Pretorius has set a new record in men's T20 cricket. Playing for the Titans against the Knights in the CSA T20 Challenge at Bloemfontein, he scored an unbeaten 188 off 79 balls. It is the highest individual score by a batter in the history of T20 cricket.

The match between the Titans and the Knights was played on October 2. In his explosive innings, Pretorius hit 15 fours and 13 sixes. He reached his century in just 40 balls. His fifty came off 24 balls, and the century followed in the next 16. After the hundred, he did not take long to reach 150.

The previous record belonged to West Indies great Chris Gayle. Playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in the IPL in 2013, Gayle had scored an unbeaten 175. He held the record for 13 years. Players found it very hard to break, and for many years it was considered almost impossible. Now the 13-year-old record of the "Universe Boss" is history.

It was Pretorius's third century in T20 cricket. He attacked the opposition bowlers from the start of the match. His hitting pushed the economy rate of every Knights bowler above 11.

Pretorius dominated the entire match. His side, the Titans, piled up 267 for three in 20 overs. In reply, the Knights stumbled early in the chase and could manage only 143 in 17.2 overs.