Campbell hits 65-ball century against India in Guwahati ODI
West Indies opener John Campbell scored a century off 65 balls in the second ODI against India at Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati. He hit nine fours and five sixes, reaching the mark in the 17th over with a single off Kuldeep Yadav. It is the fastest ODI century by a West Indies batter against India. Campbell also passed Chris Gayle's record with a 29-ball fifty. India won the toss and chose to bowl.
Source
Times of India — Visakhapatnam · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (5)
- John Campbell scored a century off 65 balls in the second ODI against India at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati. — Figure and venue appear in the source; no external verification possible.
- It is the fastest ODI century by a West Indies batter against India, ahead of Ricardo Powell's 72 balls (1999). — Supported by the records table in the source, which notes data limited to matches with ball-by-ball records.
- Campbell reached fifty in 29 balls, bettering Chris Gayle's 30-ball mark. — Figure appears in the source's list of fastest fifties.
- India chose to bowl after Shubman Gill won the toss; Auqib Nabi made his ODI debut and Nitish Reddy was left out. — Stated in the source without named attribution; standard match-day detail.
- West Indies made four changes, with Justin Greaves out due to a calf injury. — Attributed to no named official in the source; injury reason unsourced.
Analysts’ view opinion
After losing the first ODI by eight wickets, West Indies needed exactly this kind of aggression — and John Campbell's 65-ball century has put their hopes of levelling the series firmly back in play. A 29-ball fifty followed by a hundred inside the 17th over is an innings built on maximising the early overs; nine fours and five sixes point to a clear boundary-first plan. India's decision to win the toss and bowl looks questionable at this stage of the game.
- This is the fastest ODI century by a West Indies batter against India, bettering Ricardo Powell's 72-ball effort from 1999.
- Getting to fifty in 29 balls — past Chris Gayle's 30-ball mark — shows how extreme Campbell's early acceleration was.
- The milestone single came off Kuldeep Yadav, India's standout bowler in the first ODI, which hints at pressure building on their key wicket-taker.
- With Justin Greaves out through a calf injury, West Indies made four changes and pushed Keacy Carty into the opening role, so this start was badly needed.
- India handed Auqib Nabi an ODI debut to strengthen the pace combination, leaving out allrounder Nitish Reddy and trimming some batting depth.
What to watch — Watch whether West Indies convert this platform into a big total, or whether India's spinners claw back control through the middle overs.
The story does not establish Campbell's final score, West Indies' total or the match result — this is a snapshot at the moment of the century.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 6 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
India are hosting the West Indies in a three-match ODI series. India won the first ODI by eight wickets, in which West Indies allrounder Justin Greaves made a maiden hundred and India's spinner Kuldeep Yadav was the standout bowler. In the second ODI at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati, India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bowl, and West Indies opener John Campbell responded with a 65-ball century — the fastest ODI hundred by a West Indian against India.
Key facts
- John Campbell, a left-handed opener, reached his century off 65 balls in the 17th over with a single off Kuldeep Yadav at Guwahati.
- Campbell's innings to the milestone included nine fours and five sixes.
- The 65-ball hundred is the fastest ODI century by a West Indies batter against India, bettering Ricardo Powell's 72 balls (Singapore, 1999).
- Campbell also reached fifty in 29 balls, breaking Chris Gayle's record of 30 balls (Ahmedabad 2002 and Port of Spain 2019).
- Other fast West Indies hundreds vs India: Marlon Samuels 73 balls (Vijayawada, 2002), Shimron Hetmyer 74 balls (Guwahati, 2018) and 85 balls (Chennai, 2019).
- West Indies had lost the first ODI of the three-match series by eight wickets.
- India made one change: pace bowler Auqib Nabi made his ODI debut, with allrounder Nitish Reddy left out.
- West Indies made four changes; Justin Greaves, who scored a maiden hundred in the first game, missed out with a calf injury and Keacy Carty opened instead.
Timeline
- 1999, SingaporeRicardo Powell scores a 72-ball hundred against India — previously the fastest by a West Indian.
- 2002Chris Gayle (Ahmedabad) hits a 30-ball fifty and Marlon Samuels (Vijayawada) a 73-ball hundred against India; Wavell Hinds makes a 32-ball fifty at Vadodara.
- 2018, GuwahatiShimron Hetmyer scores a 74-ball century against India.
- 2019Hetmyer hits an 85-ball hundred in Chennai; Gayle a 30-ball fifty in Port of Spain; Nicholas Pooran a 33-ball fifty in Visakhapatnam.
- First ODI of the current seriesIndia win by eight wickets; Justin Greaves scores a maiden hundred and Kuldeep Yadav is the standout bowler.
- Wednesday, second ODI, Guwahati (2026)Gill wins the toss and India bowl; Campbell makes a 29-ball fifty and a 65-ball century, both West Indies records against India.
Who has a stake
- John Campbell — Left-handed West Indies opener who set national records for fastest ODI fifty (29 balls) and hundred (65 balls) against India.
- West Indies team — Trailing 0-1, needed a strong batting start in Guwahati to level the three-match series.
- Shubman Gill (India captain) — Won the toss and chose to bowl; his attack was taken apart in the opening overs.
- Kuldeep Yadav — India's standout bowler in the first ODI; conceded the single off which Campbell completed his century.
- Auqib Nabi — India pace bowler making his ODI debut in place of allrounder Nitish Reddy.
- Justin Greaves — Scorer of a maiden hundred in the first ODI, ruled out of the second with a calf injury.
Why it matters
Campbell's assault rewrites a West Indies record list that had been headed by names such as Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and Shimron Hetmyer, signalling that the side's batting firepower against India is not purely historical. It also gives a struggling West Indies a route back into a series they trail 0-1, and tests a reshaped Indian pace attack featuring a debutant.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- John Campbell: fastest ODI century by a West Indies batter against India — 65 balls, Guwahati, 2026.
- Campbell's 29-ball fifty broke Chris Gayle's 30-ball mark (Ahmedabad 2002, Port of Spain 2019).
- Venue: Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati, Assam — also where Hetmyer made a 74-ball hundred in 2018.
- Shubman Gill captained India in the second ODI and opted to bowl after winning the toss.
- Auqib Nabi made his ODI debut for India; Nitish Reddy was left out.
- West Indies inclusions: Keacy Carty (opener), Sherfane Rutherford, Keemo Paul and left-arm wrist spinner Vitel Lawes.
Mains framing
Campbell's 65-ball hundred illustrates how modern ODI cricket has shifted towards aggressive top-order batting, where records set in the 1990s and 2000s by players like Ricardo Powell and Chris Gayle are being overturned within a handful of overs of play. The context matters: West Indies had lost the first ODI by eight wickets and lost their first-game centurion Justin Greaves to a calf injury, forcing four changes including a new opening pair and the inclusion of a left-arm wrist spinner, Vitel Lawes. India, meanwhile, experimented with its pace combination by handing Auqib Nabi an ODI debut at the cost of allrounder Nitish Reddy — a choice immediately scrutinised when Campbell attacked from the start, hitting nine fours and five sixes before completing his hundred off Kuldeep Yadav, India's best bowler in the opener. The episode underlines the thin margins in bilateral ODIs: for West Indies, converting individual brilliance into series parity depends on depth beyond one innings; for India, bench-strength rotation must be balanced against the risk of conceding early momentum.
Key terms
- ODI (One Day International)
- Limited-overs international cricket format of 50 overs per side, the format of this three-match India–West Indies series.
- Barsapara Cricket Stadium
- International cricket venue in Guwahati, Assam, host of the second India–West Indies ODI.
- Toss
- Pre-match coin flip; Shubman Gill called correctly and India chose to bowl first.
- Left-arm wrist spinner
- Bowler type who spins the ball with the wrist using the left arm; Vitel Lawes was included for West Indies.
- Maiden hundred
- A batter's first century in that format — Justin Greaves achieved one in the first ODI of this series.
Practice questions
- Discuss how changes in batting approach have reshaped record books in One Day International cricket, using recent India–West Indies performances as illustration.
- What challenges does team selection pose in bilateral ODI series when balancing debutants against established allrounders? Examine with reference to India's second ODI XI in Guwahati.
- Injuries and forced changes often decide short bilateral series. Critically examine with reference to the West Indies' four changes in the Guwahati ODI.
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.