Watch: Rahkeem Cornwall smashes 45-ball ton before bat-drop celebration

Watch: Rahkeem Cornwall retired hurt for a 48-ball 102 in the 2023 CPL to help the Barbados Royals chase 221 against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.

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St Kitts and Nevis Patriots posted 220-4 after Sherfane Rutherford opted to bat at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown. Andre Fletcher made a 37-ball 56 and Will Smeed a 36-ball 63 before Rutherford himself hit five fours and five sixes, slamming 65 not out in 27 balls.

Cornwall claimed the first two wickets – he had Fletcher caught at deep mid-wicket and Smeed at deep square-leg – to finish with 2-27 in three overs.

It was a steep target, but Cornwall began with a six and a four in the first over, bowled by George Linde. He lost Kyle Mayers (22 in 13 balls) in the fourth over, but marched on, and the Royals raced to 67-1 after the powerplay.

There was no respite even after the field spread out, for Cornwall smashed three sixes off Yannic Cariah in the seventh over, and two more off Benny Howell in the eighth. He was on 93 when Howell began the 15th over, and he lofted the first ball for a straight six – his 12th of the day.

He pushed the second ball of the over towards long-on. Long before Cornwall, captain and non-striker Rovman Powell celebrated as he ran for the single that took ‘Jimbo’ to the coveted landmark.

Once he reached the other end, Cornwall let his the blade of willow that had fetched 12 sixes and four fours go to celebrate – and why not? Only Andre Russell has reached a CPL hundred quicker than Cornwall, who had taken 45 balls.

Russell had taken 42 balls to reach the landmark in 2016, and bettered that with a 40-ball hundred in 2016. On both occasions, he had been playing for the Jamaica Tallawahs against the Trinbago Red Steel (now Knight Riders). Nicholas Pooran had taken 45 balls as well, for the Guyana Amazon Warriors against the Patriots in 2020.

He walked off, retired hurt, three balls later, having scored 102. Powell (49 not out in 26 balls) saw his team home with 11 balls to spare.