Skipper Abhishek Sharma equaled the record for the fastest T20 century by an Indian batter as he smashed a sensational 100 off just 28 balls for Punjab in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) match against Meghalaya at the Niranjan Shah Stadium C on Thursday. With his unbeaten innings of 106 off 29, laced with 11 maximums and eight boundaries, Abhishek equaled the record for the fastest T20 century by an Indian batter with Gujarat’s Urvil Patel, who had smashed a 28-ball century against Tripura earlier in this tournament in Indore. Chasing a modest target of 143, Abhishek raced to his half-century in just 12 balls before reaching the historic milestone in just 28 balls as Punjab chased down the target in just 9.3 overs.
Abhishek’s sensational innings broke his lean patch in the tournament, as in his six previous innings, he managed 149 runs, crossing fifty only once.
Besides his heroics with bat, Abhishek also calmed two wickets in his four-over quota after conceding 24 runs at an economy of 6 as Punjab restricted Meghalaya on 142-7 in 20 overs.
Globally, Abhishek’s feat puts him just shy of the all-time fastest T20 century, a 27-ball effort by Estonia’s Sahil Chauhan against Cyprus.
Baroda registered the highest-ever men’s T20 total, scoring 349 for five in 20 overs in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match against Sikkim at Emerald High School Ground on Thursday.
The previous record for the highest T20 score was held by Zimbabwe when it scored 344 runs against Gambia in October this year.
Baroda also became the first team to post a 300-plus score in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The previous highest team total in the tournament was made by Punjab with 275 runs they scored against Andhra Pradesh in the previous edition.
Baroda went past the 300-run mark in only 17.2 overs, riding on Bhanu Pania’s 42-ball hundred before finishing on 349/5 in 20 overs.
Pania finished unbeaten on 134 off 51 deliveries on the back of five fours and 11 sixes. Abhimanyu Singh (53 off 17), Shivalik Sharma (55 off 17) and Vishnu Solanki (50 off 16) also contributed to the total with respective half-centuries.
In the process of scoring a world record total, Baroda also became the first Indian domestic team outside the IPL to record 100 runs within a T20 Powerplay. They also smashed 37 sixes in the match to reach the landmark total.
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