Lhuan-dre Pretorius 188 has rewritten the record books in spectacular fashion. The 20-year-old South African batter smashed an unbeaten 188 off just 79 balls for the Titans against the Knights in the CSA T20 Challenge in Bloemfontein, surpassing Chris Gayle’s long-standing record for the highest individual score in men’s T20 cricket.
Pretorius’ extraordinary innings included 15 fours and 13 sixes, giving him a strike rate of 237.97. His assault helped the Titans reach a massive 267/3 in 20 overs before their bowlers completed a 124-run victory by dismissing the Knights for 143 in 17.2 overs.
The record had belonged to West Indies great Chris Gayle for more than 13 years. Gayle scored an unbeaten 175 off 66 balls for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in the 2013 Indian Premier League. That innings, played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, had become one of the most iconic batting displays in T20 history.
Now, Pretorius has taken the record beyond 180.
Pretorius turns the innings into a record-breaking show
The Titans opener wasted little time putting the Knights attack under pressure. He brought up his half-century from only 24 balls before accelerating even further.
Remarkably, Pretorius needed just another 16 deliveries to move from 50 to 100. He then continued attacking almost every option available to him and reached 150 from only 58 balls. By the time the Titans completed their 20 overs, he was unbeaten on 188 from 79 deliveries.
His innings contained 28 boundaries in total — 15 fours and 13 sixes. That means 172 of his 188 runs came in boundaries, highlighting just how dominant the left-hander was during the innings.
The strike rate of 237.97 is equally eye-catching. For every 100 balls he faced, Pretorius was scoring at almost 238 runs.
There was also a sense that something even bigger might have been possible.
With 188 not out, Pretorius finished only 12 runs short of a double century. However, with the Titans reaching the end of their 20 overs, the opportunity disappeared. He became the first batter to move beyond Gayle’s famous 175 in men’s T20 cricket, but a historic 200 remained just out of reach.
How Pretorius moved past Chris Gayle
For years, Gayle’s 175* had been the benchmark for explosive T20 batting.
Gayle’s 2013 IPL innings came from 66 balls and included 13 fours and 17 sixes. He scored 154 runs through boundaries and finished with a strike rate of 265.15. The innings was so extraordinary that it became one of the defining individual performances in the history of the shortest format.
Pretorius’ record-breaking innings now stands above it at 188*.
There is an interesting difference between the two knocks. Gayle reached his 175 from 66 balls, while Pretorius needed 79 balls for his 188. But Pretorius stayed at the crease longer and produced enough runs to move 13 runs beyond the previous record.
The progression of the men’s T20 record has therefore entered another remarkable chapter. Gayle’s 175 had stood since April 2013, and Pretorius has now raised the benchmark to 188.
Titans post 267 before bowling out Knights
Pretorius’ innings was the centrepiece, but the Titans’ overall batting performance was also outstanding.
The team finished on 267/3 from 20 overs, putting the Knights under enormous pressure before they even walked out to chase.
Donovan Ferreira provided late acceleration with 29 from only 11 balls, while Leus du Plooy contributed 17 from 11. Pretorius, however, remained the main attraction throughout the innings.
The Knights never looked capable of completing the chase. They were eventually dismissed for 143 in 17.2 overs, giving the Titans a huge 124-run victory.
Gihahn Cloete top-scored for the Knights with 39, while the Titans’ bowling attack kept taking wickets at regular intervals. The result turned Pretorius’ individual record into an emphatic team victory as well.
Another major milestone in Pretorius’ rapid rise
The record-breaking 188 did not arrive completely out of nowhere.
Pretorius has recently been showing that he can produce match-changing innings at international level too. His previous appearance for South Africa came against Namibia, where he scored a 53-ball century, making it another indication of his ability to score quickly against senior bowling attacks.
At just 20 years old, Pretorius is already gaining experience across formats. The BBC report on his record-breaking innings notes that he has represented South Africa in Tests, one-day internationals and T20 cricket.
His latest performance could add another layer to his growing reputation. Domestic cricket does not always receive the same global attention as international cricket or the IPL, but a score of 188* is difficult to ignore.
The innings also came in a competition where several South African players have been using domestic cricket to push their claims for greater opportunities.
What makes the 188 so special?
The biggest number is obviously 188, but the manner in which Pretorius reached it makes the performance even more remarkable.
He scored at a strike rate of almost 238, hit 13 sixes and reached his century in only 40 balls. He also moved from 100 to 150 in just 18 deliveries.
That acceleration is particularly striking because T20 innings often slow down once a batter reaches three figures. Pretorius went in the opposite direction. Instead of protecting his century, he continued taking risks and attacking the bowling.
His final score was also enough to move him comfortably past the previous men’s T20 record.
The timing of the record is significant too. Gayle’s 175 had survived for more than a decade despite the explosion of franchise T20 leagues around the world. Players such as Aaron Finch and others have come close to the top mark, but nobody had gone beyond Gayle’s score in a men’s T20 innings until Pretorius’ 188.
Could Pretorius have scored 200?
That will probably be the biggest question after the match.
Pretorius finished unbeaten on 188, meaning he had already crossed the previous world record while still at the crease. Had the Titans needed more runs or had there been additional deliveries available, the possibility of a double century would have been very real.
But T20 cricket gives batters only 120 legal deliveries per innings, and once the 20 overs were completed, Pretorius’ innings had to end.
He therefore finished just 12 runs short of what would have been another landmark in the format.
For now, though, 188* is the number everyone will be talking about.
The record also gives Pretorius a unique place in T20 history. Chris Gayle’s 175 was once considered almost untouchable. Pretorius has shown that even the biggest T20 batting records can eventually fall.
And considering he is only 20, this may not be the last time his name appears alongside a major record.
For cricket fans, the next chapter will be particularly interesting: whether Pretorius can translate this extraordinary domestic performance into more consistent international success for South Africa.
For now, the headline belongs to Lhuan-dre Pretorius 188 — an unbeaten innings that has changed the men’s T20 record book.
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