Abhishek Sharma fifty - (Source: X.Com)
On Wednesday, January 21, India locked horns against New Zealand in the first of a five-match T20I series at the VCA stadium in Nagpur. The visitors won the toss and opted to field first in the curtain-raiser match.
The decision turned out to be gold as the hosts took two early wickets in the form of Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson. However, Abhishek Sharma took the onus on his shoulders and shattered records with his blistering knock.
The southpaw, who is the No. 1-ranked T20I batter in the world, slammed a 22-ball fifty, which featured four fours and four sixes. Courtesy of Sharma’s innings, the Men in Blue put 100 runs on the board within nine overs.
Abhishek Sharma goes past Rohit Sharma
With the knock, the southpaw also shattered Rohit Sharma’s long-standing record to slam the fastest fifty by an Indian against New Zealand in T20Is. As mentioned above, Abhishek took 22 balls to reach his half-century, and he broke Hitman’s 23-ball fifty against the Kiwis back in 2020 in Hamilton. Here is the complete list of Indians with the fastest fifty against the Blackcaps in T20Is. Notably, KL Rahul is third on the list with a fifty off 23 balls in Auckland in 2020.
Fastest 50s for India vs New Zealand in T20Is:
22 balls - Abhishek Sharma, Nagpur, 2026 (This Innings)*
23 balls - Rohit Sharma, Hamilton, 2020
23 balls - KL Rahul, Auckland, 2020
Abhishek Sharma adds new feather to his illustrious cap
Abhishek’s 22-ball fifty is also his joint-third fastest fifty in T20I career. Notably, for the unversed, Abhishek has also scored a 17-ball fifty which came against England at Wankhede last year. Here is the complete list of Abhishek Sharma’s fastest fifties in T20I cricket
Fastest 50s for Abhishek Sharma in T20Is:
17 balls vs England, Wankhede, 2025
20 balls vs England, Kolkata, 2025
22 balls vs Sri Lanka, Dubai, 2025
22 balls vs New Zealand, Nagpur, 2026 (This Innings)*
Strike-rate a key component of Abhishek’s batting
Abhishek is ranked No.1 T20I batter in the world for a reason, and he proves it day in and day out with consistent performance with the bat. The southpaw finished 2025 as India’s leading run-getter in T20s with 1602 runs and missed Virat Kohli’s record by just 12 runs.
Further, Abhishek matches the demand of the modern game, which is to bat fast. Notably, the left-handed batter has scored seven-fifty plus scores in less than 25 balls.
Most Half-Centuries off 25 Balls or Less in T20Is
7* - Abhishek Sharma
7 - Phil Salt
7 - Suryakumar Yadav
7 - Evin Lewis
Talking about the ongoing match, at the time of writing this article, Abhishek Sharma missed out on scoring his 3rd T20I century and returned to the pavillion after scoring 84 (35), which featured eight sixes and five fours. Further, India have put 150/3 after 12 overs.
