Four Knights' batsmen score centuries in the same innings to set a new record

South Africa’s first-class tournament, the Sunfoil Series witnessed a record in the first round game of 2017/18 season played between Knights and Cape Cobras. The 4-day fixture played at the Bloemfontein was the first ever instance when four batsmen scored centuries in the same innings in a first-class game in South Africa’s franchise cricket.

Four batsmen from the Knights’ struck centuries in the first innings as their reply to Cape Cobras’ total of 159 who had elected to bat first. The Knights’ captain Theunis de Bruyn and opener Keegan Petersen struck big hundreds to hand their side a huge first inning lead. De Bruyn scored 195 off 259 with 24 fours and a six while Petersen scored 141 runs off 282 balls. The pair shared a 295-run stand for the 2nd wicket before getting out in the 2nd session on day two.

Rudi Second and Werner Coetsee, the other two centurions in the Knights’ innings walked out to bat after De Bruyn and David Miller’s wickets in a quick succession. With the help of an unbeaten 210-run stand for the 5th wicket, the pair took the side’s total to 623/4 before they declared with a huge lead of 464. Keeper-batsman Rudi Second scored 101 off 176 balls with 11 boundaries while Coetsee struck a 135-ball 105 with ten fours and two sixes.

Overall, this was the 4th instance when four centuries were recorded in the same innings in South African first-class cricket but the first ever in their franchise cricket history. The first of the previous three instances came during the Marylebone Cricket Club’s tour to South Africa in 1938/39 where the MCC side faced Griqualand West team in Johannesburg where four of the visiting team batters struck hundreds in the first innings.

South Africa against The Rest team in 1964 and Sri Lanka A in 2008 against South Africa A in the unofficial Test match also had four centurions in an innings.

Instances of four centurions in a first-class match in South Africa: