Once his mother sold her jewelery to buy him a bat, Sakibul Gani is now the fastest centurion in Vijay Hazare Trophy history and his last innings is a stirring reminder of how far faith and sacrifice can take a cricketer. At the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Wednesday, Gani produced a performance that stopped Indian cricket in its tracks and retraced his remarkable journey to the center stage.
The road to this moment has never been smooth. There was a stage when Gani’s family could barely afford the basics let alone cricket gear. In those difficult days, it was his mother who stopped her jewelry so that her son could continue to dream with a bat in his hand. His elder brother Faisal often recalled the defining moment before Gani left to play Ranji Trophy cricket, when their mother handed him three bats and said: “Go, my son, and come back with three centuries.” It wasn’t just encouragement; it was faith. And Gani honored it on the pitch.
At Ranchi’s JSCA Oval against Arunachal Pradesh, the Bihar captain delivered another chapter that will be remembered for years. He raced to his hundred in just 32 balls, rewriting the record books and became the fastest Indian to score a century in tournament history.
The onslaught did not end there. Gani finished unbeaten on 128 off just 40 deliveries, an innings that combined power with clear intent. Ten fours and twelve towering sixes flew off his bat as the attack wilted. In doing so, the 26-year-old surpassed the previous Indian standard set by Ishan Kishan, who reached his 33-ball Vijay Hazare hundred against Karnataka. The ease with which Gani dismantled the bowling left spectators and pundits alike in awe.
In a broader sense, the numbers put him in rare company. Gani is now the fastest Indian to score a List A century and the third fastest in the world, behind Jake Fraser-McGurk and AB de Villiers.
Born on 2 September 1999 in Motihari, Bihar, Gani’s cricket education did not come from elite academies or traditional powerhouses. It started at a local academy where he laid the foundations of his batting and developed into a useful medium pace bowler. Consistent performances at under-19 level soon attracted attention and opened doors.
A right-handed batsman with a taste for big races, Gani went on to represent India at the Under-19 level before making a memorable debut in the Ranji Trophy. He declared with a historic 341 against Mizoram and became the first player to score a triple century on first-class debut. This innings, studded with 56 fours and two sixes, was as much a statement of intent as it was a revelation of talent.
Yet, despite a trail of records and eye-catching performances, an opportunity in the Indian Premier League has so far remained out of reach. However, the numbers continue to argue on his behalf. From 28 first-class matches, Gani scored 2,035 runs, including five centuries and eight half-centuries. In List A cricket, he amassed 867 runs from 33 matches, including two hundreds and two fifties.
– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
December 24, 2025
