Josh Brown lived up to his billing on day one of the Japan Premier League by smashing the highest score in the nine-year history of the competition. 

Taking on the North Kanto Lions, the Big Bash League star passed fifty in 20 balls, a hundred in 39 balls and ended 124 from just 55 balls, and passed Hanif Khan’s long standing record of 115, set in the very first year of the JPL. 

He brought up each of the major landmarks with sixes, and hit 13 in all, along with six regulation boundaries on a dangerous day for spectators and passing birds on SICG 1.  

Brown dominated stands of 87 and 83 with Pankaj Chand (17) and Siddhanta Khatri (27) before Declan Suzuki struck 32* from 14 balls to take the Kansai Chargers to the highest JPL team ever of 222 for four, passing the 216 for seven from that same match in 2016. 

The Lions looked beaten by the end of the third over, as a rampant Chargers took the first four wickets for just seven runs. Seven bowlers took wickets with captain Abdul Samad the pick of them with three wickets for just two runs. 

The Chargers eventually knocked over all ten Lions batter for just 82, giving them a 140-run win in their only game of the day. 

Elsewhere a pair of half centuries for Japan Captain Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming led the East Kanto Sunrisers to the top of the table. His 66 from 36 balls got the tournament off to a flyer as the Sunrisers made 147 all out against the South Kanto Super Kings, for whom Musashi Fujihara stood out with three for 20. 

Although Aditya Phadke made an entertaining 45 from 37 balls at the top of the order for the Super Kings, the Sunrisers bowling was too strong as six bowlers all took wickets to bowl the Super Kings out for 109 to win by 38 runs.

Kadowaki-Fleming took that form into the afternoon clash with West Kanto Hurricanes as he hit 78 from 54 balls as the Sunrisers made 167 for six with only Sora Ichiki standing up for the Hurricanes with two for 17 from his four overs. 

The Sunrisers bowlers then showed how it was done by taking wickets at the top of the order before Ben Ito-Davis followed up his 30 with the bat by taking four for just nine runs to bowl the Hurricanes all out for a paltry  71 to earn a 96-run win. 

That defeat completed a day of struggle for the defending champions, who were well beaten by North Kanto Lions in their opening match as well. 

Koji Hardgrave-Abe led the Lions to a first innings total of 141 for six, at one stage scoring 39 runs from 11 balls on his way to 83* from 54 balls with six sixes and several lost balls.

Although plenty of Hurricanes batters got starts in the chase, the Lions kept chipping them out with Anushantha Chandima grabbing three for 18 to bowl his side to a 32-run victory with the Hurricanes all out for 109. 

Match Summaries: 

• East Kanto Sunrisers, 147/10 (Kadowaki-Fleming 66, Fujihara 3/20), beat South Kanto Super Kings, 109/10 (Phadke 45) by 38 runs.
• North Kanto Lions, 141/6 (Hardgrave-Abe 83*), beat West Kanto Hurricanes, 109/10 (Chandima 3/18) by 32 runs).
• Kansai Chargers, 222/4 (Brown 124, Suzuki 32*) beat North Kanto Lions, 82/10 (Samad 3/2) by 140 runs.
• East Kanto Sunrisers, 147/10 (Kadowaki-Fleming 78, Ito 30), beat West Kanto Hurricanes (Ito 4/9) by 96 runs.

Highlights: 

• Sunrisers vs Super Kings
• Chargers vs Lions