 "Abhishek Sharma ended his knock vs Bengal on 144 not out off just 48 balls as he smashed 16 sixes and eight fours. Image: PTI")
India and Sunrisers Hyderabad batter Abhishek Sharma was on fire in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 at his IPL home ground in Hyderabad on Sunday as he smashed a fifty in just 12 balls against Bengal, emulating the record of his mentor, Yuvraj Singh. Abhishek Sharma did not stop there as he went on to convert it into a 32-ball century.
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Former Indian batter Yuvraj Singh created a world record in the 2007 T20 World Cup when he took just 12 balls to complete a fifty against England. It was the same game in which Yuvraj hit Stuart Broad for six consecutive sixes in an over. At that time, it was the fastest T20 fifty in international cricket, before Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee surpassed the record by getting to a fifty in just nine balls against Mongolia in 2023.
Abhishek Sharma emulates mentor Yuvraj Singh
On Sunday, Abhishek Sharma emulated his mentor Yuvraj by getting to his fifty in just 12 balls against a bowling attack that consisted of Mohammed Shami and Akash Deep. The Punjab batter completed his century in just 32 balls. This is the third fastest T20 hundred by an Indian batter.
The record for the fastest T20 hundred by an Indian batter is also co-owned by Abhishek, who took just 28 balls to reach the three-figure mark in 2024. Urvil Patel also holds the record for making a T20 century in just 28 balls.
Abhishek Sharma ended his knock against Bengal on 144 not out off just 48 balls. He smashed 16 sixes and eight fours and collected his runs at an incredible strike rate of 300.
The 25-year-old opener has now smashed eight T20 centuries so far in 157 innings. Abhishek is only one short of Virat Kohli’s tally of nine T20 tons, which is the most for an Indian batter.