Forde’s 16-ball whirlwind equals de Villiers’ ODI record
A new name just crashed into one of cricket’s most sacred speed records. Matthew Forde, the West Indies’ young seam-bowling allrounder, matched AB de Villiers’ mark for the fastest ODI fifty, racing to his half-century in 16 balls against Ireland in Dublin on May 23, 2025. Batting at No. 8 with the innings in the balance at 246/6 in the 44th over, Forde turned a good total into a giant one and left Ireland’s death bowling in pieces.
The intent was obvious from his second ball: he launched a towering six and never let up. Josh Little, Ireland’s premier left-arm quick, copped the brunt of it. Short balls disappeared over long-on, attempted bouncers were muscled into the stands, and when Little overstepped, Forde clattered the extra delivery and the final ball of the over for more sixes. It wasn’t just brute force; he mixed power with range, including a clever scoop off Thomas Mayes that underlined this was controlled chaos, not slogging.
He reached the landmark in 16 deliveries, drawing level with de Villiers’ Johannesburg masterclass against the West Indies in 2015. This was Forde’s maiden ODI fifty—his previous best was 38 off 48 in the first match of the series—yet here he looked like a seasoned closer. He finally fell to a spearing leg-stump yorker for 58, but the damage was done. By the time he walked off in the 47th over, West Indies had stormed past 314/7 and ultimately closed on 352/8, with late support from Justin Greaves and Gudakesh Motie.
Records in limited-overs cricket often skew toward top-order batters with time to settle and fields up. That’s what makes this different. A 16-ball fifty from No. 8 is a rare sight. Forde walked in with just under seven overs left, no sighters offered, and detonated the death overs. It was the sort of cameo that flips scoreboards and, just as importantly, momentum in dressing rooms.
For context, here’s where Forde now sits among the fastest ODI fifties ever recorded:
- 16 balls: AB de Villiers (vs West Indies, Johannesburg, 2015) and Matthew Forde (vs Ireland, Dublin, 2025)
- 17 balls: Sanath Jayasuriya (vs Pakistan, Singapore, 1996); Kusal Perera (vs Pakistan, Pallekele, 2015); Martin Guptill (vs Sri Lanka, Christchurch, 2015)
- 18 balls: Shahid Afridi (vs Netherlands, Colombo, 2002) and (vs Sri Lanka, Nairobi, 1996)
De Villiers’ 16-ball surge at the Wanderers sat untouched for a decade. That day he also rocketed to the fastest ODI hundred (31 balls) and finished with a strike rate that felt like a video game. Forde didn’t need a long stay to channel that same shock value. His 58 arrived in a blur—more about timing and intent than time at the crease.
The sequence that set up the storm told its own story: early reconnaissance, then a clean, escalating assault on length. When Ireland banged it in, Forde went deep in the crease and swung through the line. When they pitched up, he picked the arc over extra cover. Miss wide? He opened the face. Miss straight? He went downtown. It forced the hosts to shuffle fields constantly, which only handed him more scoring options.
What changed on the scoreboard was obvious—West Indies went from a competitive total to a daunting one. What changed in the dugout might be bigger. Finishing power has become non-negotiable in ODIs built around T20 skills. Teams now map their innings in phases, aiming to break the game late. A No. 8 who can threaten 12–14 an over swings that plan in a heartbeat. Forde just posted a live advert for why selection panels value allrounders who can close.
The innings spoke to a wider West Indies project too. Under a white-ball reboot, they’ve leaned into fearless batting and multi-skilled cricketers to keep pace with the modern game. Andre Russell and Nicholas Pooran set the template in T20s; the ODI side is now chasing the same DNA lower down the order. When Nos. 7, 8, and 9 believe they can win the last six overs, captains hold back powerplay-level intent for the death. You win the final act, you often win the match.
This cameo also showed tactical clarity. Forde targeted pace-on deliveries, which travel faster off the bat in cool, late-evening conditions. He reduced risk by hitting in his strongest zones—straight and over midwicket first, then expanding to extra-cover once he had the rhythm. Ireland tried to counter with slower bouncers and the yorker. The one that finally hit the base of leg stump ended the carnage, but bowls like that have to be perfect, ball after ball. One miss, and it’s 10 rows back.
Players rarely land on such lists without lasting power. Jayasuriya reimagined ODI starts. Afridi lived off audacity and timing. Guptill’s bat swing is a metronome when he’s on. Kusal Perera has that left-handed, front-foot aggression that bullies the new ball. By joining them, Forde doesn’t instantly become a finished hitter. What it does say is he has the bat speed and decision-making to own the most profitable phase in ODIs.
Even stripped of the record talk, the micro-impact is massive. Ireland were lining up a chase that fit the surface and boundaries. Add 35–40 extra in the last five overs and suddenly the required rate tilts, risk goes up early, and mistakes follow. Scoreboard pressure isn’t just a number; it’s an emotion. Fielders get tighter, captains gamble earlier, and batters overreach sooner than planned.
There’s another layer here: confidence. Forde arrived in this series off a steady 38 in the first ODI. To ramp from that to a 16-ball fifty shows a player reading conditions and his role. He knew his job wasn’t to bat time; it was to bend the game. That clarity separates a one-off cameo from a repeatable method.
Technique-wise, a few notes stand out. He held a stable base, resisted the back-foot shuffle that often leads to top edges, and he stayed leg-side of the ball on the big swings—small details that keep the blade face open and breathing room clear. The scoops weren’t afterthoughts; they were calculated responses to fine-leg up and square leg set deep. That’s planning, not impulse.
For Ireland, the lesson is familiar in the T20 era bleeding into ODIs: you can’t live in one pace or one length at the death. The yorker and the wide yorker must be married to slower-ball variations, and fields have to mirror the plan. When the line wavered, Forde punished. When the length missed the hole by inches, he cashed in. It’s the cruelty of the format—good balls now need to be perfect.
Stack this up against the fastest-fifty club and the common thread is decisiveness. De Villiers went from ball one with intent and never hit the brakes. Jayasuriya and Kusal Perera thrive when they shrink the bowler’s margin for error. Afridi rode momentum like a wave. Forde tapped into that same current, but did it from the lower middle order, which carries extra risk—fewer balls to face and fewer partners to hide behind if it goes wrong.
As for the bigger picture, West Indies have been searching for a white-ball identity that travels. Days like this help. They don’t just add a W or a big total; they shape selection debates, training drills, and the belief that 300 is no longer a ceiling. When the dressing room has seen 16 balls change a game, the next player is more willing to swing for 12 off three instead of 6 off three. That’s how teams change tempo across formats.
Forde won’t always swing this hot; no finisher does. But the skill set is clear enough: back-end power, range of hitting, and a calm head under the clock. If the West Indies keep giving him the same role clarity—and if he continues to add layers, like a repeatable wide-yorker option—this won’t be a one-line entry under “records.” It will be the start of a habit that wins tight matches.
The record, the list, and what it signals for ODI cricket
One stat now defines the night: 16 balls to fifty, level with AB de Villiers. For a decade, that number stood alone. It took a lower-order West Indian in Dublin to share the top step. The names stacked just behind—Jayasuriya, Kusal Perera, Guptill, Afridi—tell you the club Forde just joined.
Zoom out and it mirrors the direction of modern ODIs. Power at the death is no longer optional; it’s baked into how teams pace their innings. The leap from 300 to 350 often lives in overs 44–50. On Friday in Dublin, Matthew Forde owned those overs. Ireland were the immediate victims. The rest of the ODI circuit will take note.
