Faf du Plessis created a T20 world record when he smashed his eighth hundred in the format during Texas Super Kings' match against MI New York on Sunday (June 29).
Texas lost opener Smit Patel in the second over for three after being put into bat. Saiteja Mukkamall (25 off 18) then stitched an 80-run second-wicket partnership with du Plessis, who did much of the heavy lifting.
No.4 Marcus Stoinis also made 25 (off 22 balls), while Donovan Ferreira (53 off 20) added the late push to the innings as Texas scored 223-4 in their 20 overs. Du Plessis anchored the innings from one end, reaching his hundred off the 51st ball he faced, in the 19th over. He remained unbeaten on 103 off 53, having hit five fours and nine sixes.
Match 21, Texas Super Kings vs MI New York
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- Ball by ball Over
Faf du Plessis becomes first batter with two T20 tons after turning 40
The former South Africa captain had also hit a hundred (100 off 51 balls) 10 days back, during TSK's match against San Francisco Unicorns. Du Plessis celebrated his 40th birthday on July 13, 2024, meaning his two MLC 2025 tons came aged 40 years 342 days and 40 years 351 days. This is now a world record. No other batter has scored more than one T20 hundred aged 40 or above.
Also read: Four POTM awards in a week: Australia opener on verge of T20 world record in MLC 2025
In fact, only two other batters with verifiable ages have scored a T20 hundred after their 40th birthdays: Paul Collingwood and Graeme Hick. Collingwood is the oldest recorded T20 centurion - aged 41 years 65 days - at the time of writing.
For Faf, it was his seventh T20 hundred while batting first and the third that resulted in a victory for his team. Four of his hundreds have come in defeats, while one match was washed out. Du Plessis now has three hundreds in Major League Cricket, the most by any batter. Finn Allen is the only other batter to have made multiple tons (two) in the tournament's history so far.
Oldest T20 centurions
| Player | Age | Runs | Balls Faced | SR | Team | Date |
| Paul Collingwood | 41y 65d | 108* | 60 | 180 | Durham | July 30, 3017 |
| Graeme Hick | 41y 37d | 110 | 49 | 224.48 | Worcestershire | June 29, 2007 |
| Faf du Plessis | 40y 351d | 103* | 53 | 194.33 | Texas Super Kings | June 29, 2025 |
| Faf du Plessis | 40y 343d | 100 | 51 | 196.07 | Texas Super Kings | June 20, 2025 |
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