IND vs ENG: Jamie Smith creates history, equals Harry Brook in elite list with 80-ball hundred in Edgbaston Test

Jamie Smith played a sensational knock and brought up his hundred after facing just 80 deliveries against India at Edgbaston. The England wicketkeeper-batter proved to be a nightmare for the Indian bowlers as he smashed them all around the stadium in Birmingham and moved into three-digits during the first session of Day 3 itself. Notably, this was only Smith's second century in the format.

Smith had come out to bat when England had just lost both Joe Root and Ben Stokes on consecutive delieveries and were reeling on 84/5. However, the 24-year-old formed a brilliant partnership with Harry Brook and started punishing the Indian bowling attack. With their 'Bazball' approach, the duo scored boundaries for fun on the dry pitch at Edgbaston. 

With the 80-ball ton, Smith broke a plethora of records. He became the English player to score the fastest century against India in red-ball cricket. He also equaled Harry Brook and scored the joint third-fastest century by an England batter in Test history.

Here is a list of the top 5 fastest centuries scored by an England player in Test cricket -

1. Gilbert Jessop - 76 deliveries vs Australia, 1902

2. Jonny Bairstow - 77 deliveries vs New Zealand, 2022

3. Harry Brook - 80 deliveries vs Pakistan, 2022

4. Jamie Smith - 80 deliveries vs India, 2025

5. Ben Stokes - 85 deliveries vs New Zealand, 2015

Brook also didn't stay much behind Smith and went on to bring up his century shortly after the second session commenced. The England batter hit 12 boundaries and a six as he moved into triple-figures for the first time in this series. This was Brook's ninth ton in the format and it came when the Three Lions required it badly.

As of now, Smith and Brook's partnership has crossed the 200-run mark while England's total has gone over the 300-run mark. Both the batters are showing no mercy to the Indian bowlers and are still hitting boundaries for fun. The Men in Blue need to break this stand as soon as they can in order to took a big lead heading into their second innings.