Yuvraj Samra creates history during Canada's T20 World Cup 2026 clash against New Zealand

Canada opener Yuvraj Samra created history on Tuesday (February 17) by becoming the youngest player ever to score a century in a World Cup. At just 19 years and 41 days old, Samra smashed 110 runs from 65 balls against New Zealand in a Group D match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

With this knock, the left-hander broke a long-standing record held by Ireland’s Paul Stirling. Stirling was 20 years and 196 days old when he scored a hundred against the Netherlands during the 2011 ODI World Cup at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

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PLAYER	COUNTRY	AGE	TOURNAMENT	RUNS	BALLS	4/6s	AGAINST	VENUE	DATE
Yuvraj Samra	Canada	19 years, 141 days	2026 T20 World Cup	110	65	11/6	New Zealand	Chennai	February 17, 2026
Paul Stirling	Ireland	20 years, 196 days	2011 ODI World Cup	101	72	14/2	Netherlands	Kolkata	March 18, 2011
Ricky Ponting	Australia	21 years, 76 days	1996 ODI World Cup	102	112	5/1	West Indies	Jaipur	March 4, 1996
Avishka Fernando	Sri Lanka	21 years, 87 days	2019 ODI World Cup	104	103	9/2	West Indies	Chester-le-Street	July 1, 2019
Ibrahim Zadran	Afghanistan	21 years, 330 days	2023 ODI World Cup	129*	143	8/3	Australia	Mumbai (WS)	November 7, 2023
Virat Kohli	India	22 years, 106 days	2011 ODI World Cup	100*	83	8/2	Bangladesh	Mirpur	February 19, 2011
Ahmed Shehzad	Pakistan	22 years, 127 days	2014 T20 World Cup	111*	62	10/5	Bangladesh	Mirpur	March 30, 2014
Sachin Tendulkar	India	22 years, 300 days	1996 ODI World Cup	127*	138	15/1	Kenya	Cuttack	February 18, 1996
Sachin Tendulkar	India	22 years, 313 days	1996 ODI World Cup	137	137	8/5	Sri Lanka	Delhi	March 2, 1996
AB De Villiers	South Africa	23 years, 52 days	2007 ODI World Cup	146	130	12/5	West Indies	St. Georges	April 10, 2007

Samra also became the first player from an associate nation to score a century in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. On top of that, he is now the youngest batter to hit a hundred in the history of the T20 World Cup.

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Before this, the record for the youngest T20 World Cup centurion belonged to Pakistan’s Ahmed Shehzad. He was 22 years and 127 days old when he scored 111 runs off 62 balls against Bangladesh in Mirpur in 2014.

PLAYER	COUNTRY	AGE	EDITION	RUNS	BALLS	4/6s	AGAINST	VENUE	DATE
Yuvraj Samra	Canada	19 years, 141 days	2026	110	65	11/6	New Zealand	Chennai	February 17, 2026
Ahmed Shehzad	Pakistan	22 years, 127 days	2014	111*	62	10/5	Bangladesh	Mirpur	March 30, 2014
Suresh Raina	India	23 years, 156 days	2010	101	60	9/5	South Africa	Gros Islet	May 2, 2010
Alex Hales	England	25 years, 83 days	2014	116*	64	11/6	Sri Lanka	Chattogram	March 27, 2014
Glenn Phillips	New Zealand	25 years, 327 days	2022	104	64	10/4	Sri Lanka	Sydney	October 29, 2022

Batting confidently against New Zealand, Samra struck 11 fours and 6 sixes for the Dilpreet Bajwa-led Canadian side. However, his brilliant effort was not enough to secure a win. Canada posted 173 runs but still ended up losing the match by eight wickets.