In the ongoing second Test between England and West Indies, the visitors WI won the toss and elected to bowl first. The decision proved to be a bad one for the Caribbean side. Despite taking the early wicket of Z. Crawley, ENG recorded one of the fastest team 50s in Test matches. The likes of O. Pope and B. Duckett attacked the WI bowling.
During Day One on July 18, the home team managed to get 416 all-out before the stumps. On the ongoing Day Two, WI have started their reply with 53/1 at the time of writing, trailing by 363 runs. Meanwhile, in this listicle, we will discuss the six fastest team 50s recorded in the history of Test match cricket.
Six Fastest Team 50s in Test Matches
- England against West Indies in 2024 (26 balls)
On Day One, after losing the wicket of Z. Crawley in the first over, the likes of Pope and Duckett took the attack on the WI bowlers. They helped the team get 50/1 in just 4.2 overs, batting in the modern T20 style. Both batters had a phase of not being able to score the same way after a few overs but kept the partnership going.
- England against South Africa in 1994 (27 balls)
In the last match of the three-game Test series, South Africa batted first and amassed 332 all-out with B. McMillan (93), D. Richardson (58), etc contributing. In reply, the home team, ENG could get only 304, trailing by 28 runs. The second innings saw the Proteas being bowled out for 175, asking the home team to score 204 runs to win with two days left. However, the Three Lions decided not to mess around and scored the first fifty in just 4.3 overs. They chased the target in 35.3 overs with eight wickets in hand.
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England against Sri Lanka in 2002 (30 balls)
In the last Test of the England vs Sri Lanka series, the home team, ENG batted first and scored 512 all-out. In reply, the Lankan Lions managed only 253 all-out and were asked to follow-on on Day Four. On the second last day of the game, SL put up a fight which extended to the last day. After bowling out the visitors for 308 runs, the home team needed to chase 50 runs in quick time. They managed to do so in only five overs.
- Sri Lanka against Pakistan in 2004 (32 balls)
In the second and the last Test, SL batted first and managed 208 all-out. After this, the home side, PAK got to 478, leading by 270 runs. In the second innings, SL decided to put up a fight and scored 50 in 32 balls. They ended up getting 406 all-out and asked PAK to chase 137 runs. The home team did it with six wickets in hand.
- India vs England in 2008 (33 balls)
This match was played a few days after the horrific 26/11 terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Meanwhile, the match was played in Chennai and ENG managed to get 316 all-out batting first. In reply, the home team could only get 241 all-out. K. Pieterson, who was the captain of the team, decided to declare the innings at 311/9, asking India to get 387. The home team’s reply started with them getting 50 runs in just 5.3 overs. They ended up reaching the target with six wickets in hand on Day Five.
