Cricket Batting Milestones: 50, 100, 150, 200, 300 and Records
Batting milestones mark achievement at the crease. Learn what it means to score a 50, century, double century, and triple century — and what the highest individual innings scores in cricket history are.
The standard batting milestones
A fifty (or half-century): 50 runs in a single innings — the most common batting milestone, often viewed as the threshold for a 'useful contribution'. A century (100 runs): the most celebrated individual batting achievement in all forms of cricket. A double century (200 runs): a Test match achievement requiring exceptional concentration and stamina — typically takes 5–7 hours. A triple century (300 runs): extraordinarily rare, achieved only by the greatest Test batters in history. Any score of 400+ is practically unattainable except in the most exceptional circumstances.
The highest individual innings in Test cricket
The highest individual innings in Test cricket is Brian Lara's 400 not out for West Indies vs England in Antigua in 2004. Lara also holds the previous record (375, also set against England), which he reclaimed by passing Matthew Hayden's 380 (vs Zimbabwe in 2003). In women's Test cricket, the record is held by Deepti Sharma (India) who scored 188. In T20Is, the highest individual scores are more limited by the format — anything above 100 in T20 is exceptional; T20I centuries are rare events.
Milestones in T20 cricket
In T20 cricket, the typical match innings targets are 150–200 total runs — so an individual 50 in T20 is substantial (at a run-a-ball, reaching 50 takes half the batting team's available overs). A T20 century requires scoring at close to double the average run rate for the full 20-over innings — extraordinarily aggressive. The first-ever T20I century was scored by New Zealand's Brendon McCullum (116 not out vs Bangladesh in 2012); in women's T20Is, the first century was scored by Delyse Annetts (Australia, 1993, before the modern T20I format).
Frequently asked questions
What is a 'nervous nineties' moment?
When a batter is between 90 and 99 runs, they often become tense and cautious — aware that a century is close but risking dismissal by being too conservative. Statistically, batters dismiss more frequently in the 90s than in the 80s, supporting the psychological reality of the 'nervous nineties'.
What is the highest ODI score by a woman?
The highest individual score in women's ODIs is 232 not out, scored by Belinda Clark (Australia) vs Denmark in 1997. This remains one of cricket's most remarkable batting feats, achieved in a 50-over match.