BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (AP) — Tim David scored the fastest century for Australia in a Twenty20 international which lifted the tourists to a series-clinching six-wicket win over West Indies in the third game of a five-match series on Friday.
David and Mitchell Owen's unbroken 128-run stand guided Australia to 215-4 off 16.1 overs to seal the victory and an unassailable 3-0 series lead.
Making the most of the small dimensions at Warner Park in St. Kitts, David brought up his first international century from the final ball of the match with his sixth boundary. His blistering 102 not out, with 11 sixes, came from just 37 balls and bettered the mark of 43 balls set by current team-mate Josh Inglis against Scotland last year.
It was also the third fastest century among ICC member nations, with only India’s Rohit Sharma and South Africa’s David Miller bettering the mark with 35 balls, both in 2017.
“I didn’t think I would have the opportunity to score 100 for Australia, so I’m so grateful for that opportunity and and pretty stoked,” David said.
David's fireworks overshadowed a brilliant unbeaten century by West Indies captain Shai Hope (102 off 57 balls) which featured eight boundaries and six sixes to lead West Indies to 214-4 off its 20 overs.
Hope combined with opening partner Brandon King to put on 125 runs in 11.4 overs as the hosts made a rapid-fire start after losing the toss and being asked to bat first.
King made a spritely 62 off 36 balls before holing out to Sean Abbott off Mitchell Owen.
The skipper raised his deserved ton in the 19th over with a single off his 55th ball to join Chris Gayle as the only West Indies male player with centuries in all formats.
Brief cameos from Shimron Hetmyer (9), Rovman Powell (9), Sherfane Rutherford (12) supported Hope's solo assault on Australia's bowlers and lifted the hosts past 200.
Australia's chase started haphazardly with Glenn Maxwell — opening again with skipper Mitch Marsh — run out for 20 going for a tight single.
Inglis (15) was next to go failing to get enough distance on his strike into the stiff breeze and was caught at deep square leg off Romario Shepherd (2-39), who was in the team for the retired Andre Russell.
Marsh (22) was caught behind off Jason Holder two overs later and when Cameron Green (11) fell the same way to be Shepherd's second wicket the tourists were at 87-4 and rocking.
Enter Tim David who brought his destructive power game to smash the West Indies bowlers to all corners of the small ground, and indeed often outside of Warner Park, as the target was whittled down in rapid time.
David raised his fifty off 16 balls, also an Australian record, and he only slowed down slightly in the next fifty as he teased the West Indies bowlers into his wide hitting arc.
The Australian should have been stopped at 90 but King dropped a simple catch at deep mid-wicket off Shepherd to cruel any late chance the hosts may have had.
David was well-complemented by his fellow Tasmanian Owen (36 off 16) — who continued his bright start to his international career — as the pair's 128-run stand off 48 balls sealed the win.
“I honestly don’t think we had enough runs on the board on a pitch like that, you need to understand the dimensions of the ground,” Hope said. It’s very difficult to defend a score of 200 at St. Kitts with that surface."
Australia had a three-wicket win to open the series on Sunday, while Inglis and Green led Australia to an eight-wicket victory in Wednesday's second match, spoiling Russell’s last game for West Indies.
Australia’s win streak in the Caribbean now stands at six-matches following the 3-0 test series sweep.
The fourth match will be played at the same ground on Saturday.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
Australia players pose with the trophy after day day three of their third Test cricket match against West Indies at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, Monday, July 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
West Indies' captain Roston Chase walks off the field after his dismissal on day two of the third Test cricket match against Australia at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday in the first verdict from eight criminal trials over the martial law debacle that forced him out of office and other allegations.
Yoon was impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024 triggered huge public protests calling for his ouster.
The most significant criminal charge against him alleges that his martial law enforcement amounted to a rebellion, and the independent counsel has requested the death sentence in the case that is to be decided in a ruling next month.
Yoon has maintained he didn’t intend to place the country under military rule for an extended period, saying his decree was only meant to inform the people about the danger of the liberal-controlled parliament obstructing his agenda. But investigators have viewed Yoon’s decree as an attempt to bolster and prolong his rule, charging him with rebellion, abuse of power and other criminal offenses.
In Friday’s case, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoon for defying attempts to detain him, fabricating the martial law proclamation, and sidestepping a legally mandated full Cabinet meeting and thus depriving some Cabinet members who were not convened of their due rights to deliberate on his decree.
Judge Baek Dae-hyun said in the televised ruling that imposing “a grave punishment” was necessary because Yoon hasn’t shown remorse and has only repeated “hard-to-comprehend excuses.” The judge also restoring legal systems damaged by Yoon’s action was necessary.
Yoon’s defense team said they will appeal the ruling, which they believe was “politicized” and reflected “the unliberal arguments by the independent counsel.” Yoon’s defense team argued the ruling “oversimplified the boundary between the exercise of the president’s constitutional powers and criminal liability.”
Prison sentences in the multiple, smaller trials Yoon faces would matter if he is spared the death penalty or life imprisonment at the rebellion trial.
Park SungBae, a lawyer who specializes in criminal law, said there is little chance the court would decide Yoon should face the death penalty in the rebellion case. He said the court will likely issue a life sentence or a sentence of 30 years or more in prison.
South Korea has maintained a de facto moratorium on executions since 1997 and courts rarely hand down death sentences. Park said the court would take into account that Yoon’s decree didn’t cause casualties and didn’t last long, although Yoon hasn’t shown genuine remorse for his action.
South Korea has a history of pardoning former presidents who were jailed over diverse crimes in the name of promoting national unity. Those pardoned include strongman Chun Doo-hwan, who received the death penalty at a district court over his 1979 coup, the bloody 1980 crackdowns of pro-democracy protests that killed about 200 people, and other crimes.
Some observers say Yoon will likely retain a defiant attitude in the ongoing trials to maintain his support base in the belief that he cannot avoid a lengthy sentence but could be pardoned in the future.
On the night of Dec. 3, 2024, Yoon abruptly declared martial law in a televised speech, saying he would eliminate “anti-state forces” and protect “the constitutional democratic order.” Yoon sent troops and police officers to encircle the National Assembly, but many apparently didn’t aggressively cordon off the area, allowing enough lawmakers to get into an assembly hall to vote down Yoon’s decree.
No major violence occurred, but Yoon's stunt caused the biggest political crisis in South Korea and rattled its diplomacy and financial markets. For many, his decree, the first of its kind in more than four decades in South Korea, brought back harrowing memories of past dictatorships in the 1970s and 1980s, when military-backed leaders used martial law and emergency measures to deploy soldiers and tanks on the streets to suppress demonstrations.
After Yoon's ouster, his liberal rival Lee Jae Myung became president via a snap election last June. After taking office, Lee appointed three independent counsels to look into allegations involving Yoon, his wife and associates.
Yoon's other trials deal with charges like ordering drone flights over North Korea to deliberately inflame animosities to look for a pretext to declare martial law. Other charges accuse Yoon of manipulating the investigation into a marine’s drowning in 2023 and receiving free opinion surveys from an election broker in return for a political favor.
A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shouts slogans outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol waits for a bus carrying former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs as police officers stand guard outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A picture of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is placed on a board as supporters gather outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
