I took 40 balls to get off the mark: Gavaskar in awe of Maxwell's record hundred

New Delhi: Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was in awe of Glenn Maxwell who set the stage on fire with the fastest World Cup century off 40 balls against the Netherlands at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Wednesday.

Maxwell walked into bat only in the 40th over of the Australian innings and smashed 106 runs off 44 deliveries comprising nine fours and eight sixes.

He broke the record of South Africa's Aiden Markram who scored a 49-ball hundred against Sri Lanka at the same venue earlier in this edition.

Talking to Star Sports after the first inning, Gavaskar looked electrified watching Maxwell’s innings.

"This one (reverse hit) has got to be one of the greatest cricketing shots. It's gone for six. It should be a 12. The bowling after that got a bit rattled because they just didn't know where to bowl. It was an incredible effort. He had an average of 12, to score the runs that he did and at the rate at which he did. It was amazing," said Gavaskar.

"I took 40 balls to get off the mark. He has scored a hundred in 40 balls, amazing, amazing," he added.

Maxwell was going through a lean patch in India as he had managed just 49 runs in the first four matches for Australia. However, Maxwell looked in complete control, dominating the V part of the ground with some blistering shots.