Dasun Shanaka Smashes Fastest CPL Hundred, Finishes 121* Off 43 With 104 Boundary Runs

BASSETERRE, St Kitts: Dasun Shanaka produced one of the most destructive innings in Caribbean Premier League history, smashing an unbeaten 121 from only 43 balls as St Kitts and Nevis Patriots surged to 235 for four against St Lucia Kings at Warner Park.

The Sri Lankan all-rounder struck eight fours and 12 sixes at a strike rate of 281.39, meaning 104 of his 121 runs came in boundaries. Only 17 runs came through singles, twos or threes.

The records piled up almost as quickly as the boundaries.

Shanaka’s 121 became the highest individual T20 score for St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, surpassing Evin Lewis’ previous franchise mark of 102. His 104 boundary runs also moved beyond Lewis’ previous Patriots record of 90 runs scored in boundaries during a T20 innings.

The most important landmark arrived when Shanaka launched Keon Gaston over square leg to complete what live match commentary immediately identified as the fastest hundred in CPL history. The previous benchmark stood at 40 balls, a mark associated with Andre Russell, Tim Seifert and, most recently, Shimron Hetmyer.

St Lucia, who chose to field, were left needing 236 to win Match 25.

This article reflects the match at the innings break and will be updated once St Lucia Kings complete their chase.

Shanaka Turns Warner Park Into a Record-Breaking Stage

St Kitts did not reach 235 through an uninterrupted assault.

When Jason Holder fell for one with the score at 142 for four after 14.5 overs, St Lucia still had an opportunity to control the closing phase. A total around 190 or 200 remained realistic.

Shanaka destroyed that possibility.

The Patriots scored 93 runs from the final five overs without losing another wicket, operating at 18.60 runs per over during that period.

Wanindu Hasaranga joined Shanaka for an unbeaten 93-run fifth-wicket partnership from only 31 balls. Hasaranga finished with nine not out from six deliveries, which underlined just how heavily the partnership was driven by Shanaka’s assault.

St Lucia’s bowlers increasingly ran out of places to bowl.

Keon Gaston finished with 0 for 66 from four overs, while Matthew Forde took two wickets but conceded 48. Shanaka punished full lengths, attacked anything drifting onto his pads and still found enough range against shorter bowling to prevent the Kings from settling on one defensive plan.

104 Boundary Runs: The Arithmetic Behind the Carnage

The final scorecard makes the scale of Shanaka’s boundary hitting unmistakable.

Eight fours produced 32 runs.

Twelve sixes produced another 72.

Together, that equals 104 runs in boundaries.

That means more than 85 percent of Shanaka’s entire innings came from balls that either reached or cleared the rope.

Only 17 of his 121 runs were accumulated without a boundary.

It is an extraordinary distribution even by modern T20 standards because Shanaka did not simply maintain a high scoring rate. He repeatedly ended deliveries immediately.

Twenty of the 43 balls he faced became boundaries.

121* Becomes the Highest Patriots T20 Score

Another franchise record fell at the same time.

Shanaka’s unbeaten 121 moved past Evin Lewis’ 102 as the highest individual T20 score recorded for St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.

The significance goes beyond adding another name to a franchise record list.

Lewis has been one of the most important power-hitters associated with the Patriots and has produced some of the franchise’s most memorable innings. Shanaka needed only 43 deliveries to move beyond his highest-score benchmark.

That gives the innings two distinct Patriots records: the highest individual score and the highest number of runs generated through boundaries.

The Six That Produced the Fastest Hundred in CPL History

The defining delivery came from Gaston.

Shanaka received a low full toss around the pads and used the line rather than trying to manufacture a complicated shot. He clipped it cleanly over square leg and into the crowd.

Warner Park erupted.

Hasaranga immediately ran toward Shanaka to celebrate as the batter absorbed the reaction from the home supporters.

Live commentary called it the fastest hundred in CPL history.

The achievement arrived only days after Shimron Hetmyer reached three figures in 40 balls against Trinbago Knight Riders, equalling the tournament benchmark that had previously been held by Andre Russell and Tim Seifert.

That makes the timing particularly remarkable. A CPL speed record that had just been matched has already been pushed further.

The Sports Encounter recently examined another major St Lucia batting performance when Tim Seifert’s unbeaten 105 helped the Kings beat TKR. Shanaka’s innings against the same St Lucia side operated at an entirely different tempo.

Shanaka: “This Innings Was Due for a Long Time”

Shanaka’s interview at the innings break added important context to what had just happened.

Asked what was going through his mind after the innings, he said he was pleased with the freedom he had shown at the crease.

“I’m really happy about the way I expressed myself in this game. This innings was due for a long time, and I’m glad it came today.”

That comment fits the shape of his tournament.

Shanaka had already produced several explosive cameos without converting one into a truly dominant innings. Against Antigua and Barbuda Falcons, he hammered 49 not out from just 17 balls as St Kitts reached 187 for six. The Falcons eventually chased the target, but Shanaka’s finish had transformed the first innings. The Sports Encounter detailed that performance in its Match 12 analysis of the Falcons-Patriots thriller.

He also threatened Jamaica Kingsmen late in Match 18, finishing unbeaten on 35 from 18 balls and striking three sixes in the final over. That late resistance formed part of our analysis of Saim Ayub’s maiden T20 century against the Patriots.

This time, Shanaka had enough deliveries to turn his finishing power into a full innings.

Why Shanaka Says the Sixes Begin With Basic Practice

The ease with which Shanaka cleared the ropes could make the innings look instinctive.

His explanation was more technical.

Asked how he hits sixes so regularly, Shanaka pointed toward repetition in training rather than simply trying to attack from his first delivery.

“I practice a lot of basics in the nets. It’s not like I’m trying to hit from ball one. I try to hit all around the ground.”

His central point was that power comes after control.

Shanaka said mastering the basics gives a batter the platform to execute attacking shots later, an approach that was visible in how widely he accessed the field against St Lucia.

His sixes did not come from one repeated swing into one section of the ground. Different lengths were redirected into different scoring areas.

That is what made the closing overs so difficult to defend.

Hasaranga Gave Shanaka the Freedom to Chase the Hundred

Hasaranga contributed only nine runs to their unbeaten 93-run partnership, but Shanaka made clear that his compatriot’s value went well beyond his own score.

He described having Hasaranga at the other end as “very special” and credited him with reinforcing the confidence required to keep attacking as the century approached.

“He was rooting for me from the other side, giving me the confidence to go for the hundred and at the same time push the score even further.”

That second part matters.

Individual landmarks can sometimes slow a T20 innings when a batter reaches the 90s. Shanaka continued attacking because the Patriots still needed to maximize the final overs.

The hundred and the team objective moved in the same direction.

The Niall O’Brien Challenge Adds a Human Detail

One of the more entertaining details from Shanaka’s interview involved commentator Niall O’Brien.

O’Brien had apparently challenged Shanaka to hit two sixes against Maheesh Theekshana.

Shanaka knew the Sri Lankan spinner well and acknowledged that Theekshana had generally bowled into the correct areas.

His adjustment was simple.

Rather than moving excessively at the crease during the closing deliveries, Shanaka stayed still and trusted his hitting base.

When he eventually got the deliveries away, his message afterward was playful:

“This is to Niall!”

It was a small moment inside a record innings, but it also illustrated how relaxed Shanaka had become despite the scale of what he was producing.

Shanaka Calls It the Second-Best Innings of His Career

Asked whether this was the best innings he had ever played, Shanaka resisted the temptation to let the moment erase everything that came before it.

He identified an earlier performance against Australia as the innings that still sits above this one personally.

Beyond that, however, he rated the Warner Park assault as his second-best.

That is significant coming from a player who has spent more than a decade in international and franchise cricket.

A 121 not out, the fastest hundred in CPL history, a franchise high score and 12 sixes gave him plenty of evidence for that assessment.

Shanaka Thanks the Warner Park Crowd

The final part of his interview shifted toward the supporters.

St Kitts have endured an inconsistent tournament, yet the home crowd has continued backing a team that still has a realistic route into the playoff race.

Shanaka thanked the fans for staying behind the Patriots and made clear that the innings would mean more if the bowlers converted 235 into a victory.

“The home fans have been amazing and rooting for us all along. Thanks a lot for coming today, and hopefully, we win this game for them.”

That final sentence captured the only unfinished part of the story at the innings break.

The personal records were secure.

The match was not.

Patriots Have Gone From Batting Fragility to Extreme Firepower

The broader St Kitts story makes Shanaka’s innings even more interesting.

The Patriots began CPL 2026 with serious batting problems.

They made only 109 for nine against TKR in their opening game as Sunil Narine took 3 for 7. The Sports Encounter’s report on the Patriots’ opening defeat showed a side struggling to create enough scoring pressure.

The response against St Lucia in Match 5 was far better. Andre Fletcher anchored the chase as the Patriots defeated the Kings by five wickets, a result covered in our first Patriots vs St Lucia report of the season.

The inconsistency continued.

Jamaica then bowled St Kitts out for 130 in Match 10 as Keemo Paul dominated with bat and ball. Shanaka made only two in that game. Our Match 10 analysis captured how quickly the Patriots’ innings could lose structure.

The last two completed batting performances have looked like a different team.

From Chasing 218 to Posting 235 in Consecutive Home Matches

In Match 23, Barbados Tridents posted 217 for four at Warner Park.

St Kitts chased it.

Johnson Charles made 78 before the Patriots reached 220 for four with five balls remaining, completing one of the biggest successful chases in CPL history. The Sports Encounter analyzed that transformation in our report on the historic 218 chase.

Now they have followed that performance by scoring 235 for four.

That is a dramatic offensive swing for a team whose playoff hopes looked close to disappearing only a few matches ago.

Charles, Fletcher, Shanaka, Holder and Hasaranga are beginning to give the batting order different ways to generate pressure rather than leaving the entire innings dependent on one role.

Why This Innings Matters to the CPL 2026 Playoff Race

St Kitts entered Match 25 with five points from seven matches.

St Lucia started on eight.

That made this more than a record-chasing batting exhibition.

A Patriots victory would move them significantly closer to the crowded top-four fight and change the arithmetic entering the final 10 league matches.

The Sports Encounter’s CPL 2026 playoff race analysis explains why matches between teams around the qualification line now carry disproportionate importance.

St Kitts still need results, but Shanaka has given them the kind of total that can transform their position.

Why 235 Still Does Not Guarantee the Result

Recent evidence from Warner Park demands caution.

The Patriots themselves chased 218 only one match earlier.

St Lucia possess enough power through Tim Seifert, Kamil Pooran, Charith Asalanka, Roston Chase and others to make a large chase possible if the opening overs go well.

The official Saint Lucia Kings team page reflects the batting and all-round depth available to the visitors.

St Kitts’ own squad and franchise information can be followed through the official St Kitts and Nevis Patriots page, while live tournament fixtures and results are available through the Caribbean Premier League match center.

The equation for St Lucia is 236.

The equation for the Patriots bowlers is simpler: make Shanaka’s innings count.

The Sports Encounter Verdict

Shanaka’s innings deserves to stand independently of the eventual result because of how many different records and ideas it brought together.

He finished unbeaten on 121 from 43 balls.

He hit eight fours and 12 sixes.

Those boundaries produced 104 runs.

He passed Evin Lewis’ 102 to register the highest T20 score for the Patriots.

He moved beyond Lewis’ previous 90-run boundary benchmark.

Most importantly, he produced the fastest hundred the CPL has seen.

The innings also revealed something about Shanaka beyond raw power. His own explanation focused on basics, range and preparation rather than simply swinging harder. Hasaranga’s encouragement helped keep him attacking as the century approached. A lighthearted challenge from Niall O’Brien added personality to the final overs.

For St Kitts, it arrived at exactly the stage of the season when an individual performance can reshape far more than one scorecard.

The records already belong to Shanaka.

Whether the two points follow will determine how much larger this night becomes for the Patriots.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many runs did Dasun Shanaka score against St Lucia Kings?

Dasun Shanaka finished unbeaten on 121 from 43 balls for St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in CPL 2026 Match 25.

How many sixes did Dasun Shanaka hit?

Shanaka hit 12 sixes.

How many fours did Shanaka hit?

He struck eight fours.

How many of Shanaka’s runs came in boundaries?

Shanaka scored 104 runs in boundaries. His eight fours produced 32 runs and his 12 sixes produced another 72.

What percentage of Shanaka’s runs came from boundaries?

Approximately 86 percent of his 121 runs came from fours and sixes.

What was Dasun Shanaka’s strike rate?

His strike rate was 281.39.

Did Dasun Shanaka score the fastest hundred in CPL history?

Yes. Live match commentary identified Shanaka’s century against St Lucia Kings as the fastest hundred in Caribbean Premier League history, moving past the previous 40-ball benchmark.

What is the highest individual score for St Kitts and Nevis Patriots?

Shanaka’s unbeaten 121 became the Patriots’ highest individual T20 score, surpassing Evin Lewis’ previous mark of 102.

Who previously held the Patriots boundary-run record?

Evin Lewis held the previous franchise mark with 90 runs scored in boundaries during an innings. Shanaka’s eight fours and 12 sixes produced 104 boundary runs.

What did St Kitts and Nevis Patriots score?

The Patriots finished on 235 for four from 20 overs.

How many runs did the Patriots score in the final five overs?

St Kitts scored 93 runs without losing a wicket during the final five overs.

How big was the Shanaka-Hasaranga partnership?

Shanaka and Wanindu Hasaranga added an unbeaten 93 runs from 31 balls for the fifth wicket.

What did Shanaka say about his innings?

Shanaka said the innings had been due for a long time and credited basic net practice, his ability to hit around the ground, Hasaranga’s encouragement and the support of the Warner Park crowd.

Does Shanaka consider this the best innings of his career?

No. Shanaka said one previous innings against Australia remains especially important to him, but he described this performance as the second-best innings of his career.

What is St Lucia Kings’ target?

St Lucia Kings require 236 runs to win the match.

Where is the match being played?

Match 25 is being played at Warner Park in Basseterre, St Kitts.