Stats: Marchant de Lange smashes Glamorgan's fastest first-class century

Marchant de Lange took the Northamptonshire bowlers to the cleaners as he struck nine maximums and six fours during his 78-ball 113 on Monday. Marchant walked out to bat at No.10 when his side Glamorgan was reduced to 60/8 and needed another 13 runs to avoid an innings defeat. De Lange, along with the No.6 batsman Daniel Douthwaite, added 168 runs from only 117 balls. Douthwaite got out scoring 86 from 90 balls but Marchant’s 62-ball hundred helped Glamorgan finish with 261 and set a target of 187 in front of the hosts.

Here are some of the stats and records created by the South African during his maiden first-class hundred:

9 – Number of sixes Marchant de Lange has struck during his 113-run knock; the joint-most number of sixes hit by a No.10 or lower batsman in a first-class inning. Tim Southee also struck as many as nine maximums while batting at No.10 during his unbeaten 77 on Test debut against England in 2008.

9 – The nine sixes by Marchant de Lange are the 3rd most in a first-class innings for Glamorgan. The highest is 15 sixes by Aneurin Donald during his 136-ball 234 against Derbyshire in 2016 while Graham Wagg hit 11 sixes during his 200 against Surrey in 2015.

62 – Marchant de Lange’s 62-ball century is now the fastest ton in first-class cricket for Glamorgan. The previous fastest recorded FC hundred for Glamorgan was off 64 balls by Gary Butcher during the 1997 University Match against Oxford University at the University Parks.

The previous fastest known hundred for Glamorgan in the County Cricket/Bob Willis Trophy was recorded by Gilbert Parkhouse off 79 balls during the 1961 season also against Northamptonshire in Northampton.

62 – Marchant’s 62-ball ton is possibly the fastest hundred in terms of balls while batting at No.10 or lower in first-class cricket. While playing against Sikhs teams in the 1923-24 Lahore tournament, the captain of Muslims team Ahsan-ul-Haq smashed an unbeaten ton at No.11 position. However, the number of balls he faced during his innings or for the century is not known.

113 – De Lange’s 113-run knock is now the highest individual score for Glamorgan while batting at No.10 or a lower position. The previous highest was an unbeaten 101 by Johnnie Clay at No.10 against Worcestershire in 1929.

113 – The 113 by De Lange is also the highest by a No.10 or lower position batter in first-class cricket against Northamptonshire. Sussex’s Arthur Watson smashed 111 from only 85 balls in the 1922 County Championship while batting at No.10 position.