Zimbabwe opener Brian Bennett scored his country's fastest Test century on Friday (May 23).
England batted first in Nottingham after being put in by visiting skipper Craig Ervine. They declared at 565-6 on the morning of day two, thanks to stellar efforts from Ben Duckett (140), Zak Crawley (124) and Ollie Pope (171).
One-off Test, England vs Zimbabwe
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When they came out to bat, Zimbabwe lost Ben Curran early, as he became Sam Cook's first-ever Test wicket. It was then up to Ervine and 21-year-old Brian Bennett to stick around, which they did – putting on 65 before Ervine was removed by Shoaib Bashir.
Read more: Youngest spinners to 50 Test wickets: England bowler breaks 56-year national record
Brian Bennett hits 97-ball century for Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge
Shortly afterwards, Bennett scored a half-century in his maiden outing in England, getting to the mark off 56 balls and looking remarkably comfortable at the crease. He stepped on the gas after crossing 50 but began to lose partners as Sean Williams went next for 25.
Unfazed, Bennett carried on attacking and eventually got to a second Test century, off 97 balls, with three consecutive fours off Gus Atkinson. He became just the second Zimbabwe batter to score a Test century in England, after Murray Goodwin in 2000, and his effort was the fastest in Zimbabwe's Test history, breaking Sean Williams' record of 106 balls.
Overall, the record for the fastest Test century belongs to New Zealand's Brendon McCullum, also present at Trent Bridge today in his capacity as England head coach. He got to three figures off just 54 balls against Australia in Christchurch in 2016.
Fastest century for each country in men's Test cricket, full list
| Team | Name | Balls Taken | Opponent | Year |
| New Zealand | Brendon McCullum | 54 | Australia | 2016 |
| Pakistan | Misbah-ul-Haq | 56 | Australia | 2014 |
| West Indies | Viv Richards | 56 | England | 1986 |
| Australia | Adam Gilchrist | 57 | England | 2006 |
| India | Mohammad Azharuddin | 74 | South Africa | 1996 |
| South Africa | Jimmy Sinclair | 75 | Australia | 1902 |
| England | Gilbert Jessop | 76 | Australia | 1902 |
| Sri Lanka | Mahela Jayawardene | 81 | Bangladesh | 2001 |
| Bangladesh | Tamim Iqbal | 94 | England | 2010 |
| Zimbabwe | Brian Bennett | 97 | England | 2025 |
| Afghanistan | Asghar Afghan | 121 | Zimbabwe | 2021 |
| Ireland | Lorcan Tucker | 149 | Bangladesh | 2023 |
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