Watch: Sydney Thunder’s Alex Hales blasted a 51-ball century in the 2020/21 Big Bash against Sydney Sixers at Adelaide on Friday to send another pointed reminder to England’s selectors about his enduring class.

Opening the batting alongside Usman Khawaja, Hales hit nine fours and eight sixes during the course of his 56-ball stay, and was dismissed only in the 19th over, having powered Thunder past 200.

The side ended with 232-5 in 20 overs, the record for the highest team total in Big Bash history.

Hales raced to his fifty in 26 balls inside the first eight overs, stitching together fifty-plus run partnerships with Callum Ferguson, Sam Billings and then Ben Cutting on his way to his fourth T20 hundred. The knock took him to the top of the BBL 10 run charts: he now has 462 runs from 12 innings at 38.50.

On Thursday, England selector Ed Smith had said that he would “expect things to stay the same for Hales”, who hasn’t played a game for England since his axing from their 2019 Cricket World Cup squad after a ban for testing positive for recreational drugs.

“At the moment, I would expect things to stay as they are there,” Smith had said. “No doors are closed in terms of there’s no final decision. It’s not that it’s going to be the same indefinitely. But at the moment, if I had to make a prediction, I would say we’d stay as we are.”

After the game, Hales, unsurprisingly named Player of the Match, said that the knock “would be right up there (with his best). Definitely top five”, but also revealed that there had been no contact with England yet. “No, nothing at all,” Hales said. “Nothing from that end. I’m just going to see what happens. I hope so, that’s the peak of cricket, playing for your country. If that’s the end result, then brilliant.”

You can watch the full highlights of his century here:

If that video is geo-blocked, abridged highlights are available here:

Just the 17 boundaries flew off Hales' bat tonight 😮 pic.twitter.com/CKGgDqLarE

— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 22, 2021

Alex Hales has made a fast start at Adelaide Oval! 🔥💥

Watch the Sydney Smash LIVE on Foxtel or Kayo #BBL10 pic.twitter.com/ZSEDqhNSon

— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 22, 2021