Kevin O'Brien

The first centurion for Ireland in Test cricket, Kevin O'Brien shot to prominence during the 2011 World Cup, when he scored the fastest ever century in a World Cup game, coming from 50 deliveries against England. 

The younger of the O’Brien brothers, Kevin was a part of the Ireland squad for the 2004 U-19 World Cup and helped his team to reach the semi-finals. He finished the tournament with 241 runs and was hailed as a teenage prodigy back then.

Born in Dublin, Ireland, the right-handed batsman made his international debut in 2006. He played his first ODI match against England and scored a brisk 35 before being dismissed by Ian Bell.

Kevin was a part of the Irish squad for the 2007 World Cup held in the West Indies. He had some useful contributions throughout the tournament, but none bigger than a priceless 52-ball 16 not out in a huge victory over Pakistan that helped Ireland reach the Super Eight stage of the World Cup.

Four years later in the 2011 World Cup, Kevin entered the history books and became the poster boy of Irish cricket when the Dublin-born smashed the fastest century (50 balls) in World Cup history. Chasing England’s 327 at Bengaluru, Ireland were tottering at 106/4 when Kevin entered the crease. He smashed six huge hits over the fence and took England bowling apart to set up a three-wicket win for his team. It was the highest successful run chase in World Cup history and Kevin became an overnight star with that sensational performance.

In 2012, Kevin was made the vice-captain of the Ireland squad, and in a game against Kenya in the same year, he was fined 20% of his match fee for using abusive language.

Kevin made a mediocre 2015 World Cup where runs dried for him as he only accumulated 131 runs in six innings at an average of just over 21.

Over the years Kevin has played a lot of T20I cricket in England and Bangladesh, West Indies and New Zealand.

He played in Ireland’s first-ever Test match in 2018. The Irish took on Pakistan and in the second innings, Kevin became the first centurion in Test matches for Ireland, when he slammed 118 against a good quality Pakistani pace attack.

An ever-reliable player in the shorter formats of the game, Kevin has been a splendid performer for his nation. Hailed as a teenage prodigy by many, Kevin has been a big match player for Ireland and now the aggressive player will look to nurture the youngsters for the future. On June 18th 2021, the Irish star called it quits from the 50-over format.

(As of July 2021)