Punjab’s opener, Abhishek Sharma, scored a century off 28 balls. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) on Thursday, while playing against Meghalaya, he made 106 runs off 29 balls. His innings included 11 sixes and 8 fours. Thanks to Abhishek’s performance, the Punjab team achieved the target of 142 runs against Meghalaya in just 9.3 overs.
In another SMAT match, Baroda set the highest-ever T20 score of 349 runs, surpassing Zimbabwe’s record of 344 runs, set earlier this year in October. In the third match, Uttar Pradesh’s Bhuvneshwar Kumar took a hat-trick, claiming 3 wickets for just 6 runs in 4 overs.
Meghalaya Managed Only 142 Runs Against Punjab
The match between Punjab and Meghalaya began at 9 AM at the Saurashtra Cricket Stadium in Rajkot. Meghalaya chose to bat but could only manage 142 runs, losing 7 wickets. None of their batters scored a half-century. Punjab’s Ramandeep Singh and Abhishek Sharma both took 2 wickets each.
Punjab’s Fast Start: 50 Runs in the Third Over
Facing a target of 143 runs, Punjab started aggressively, reaching 50 runs in just the third over. Most of the runs came from Abhishek, while Harnoor Singh (6) and Salil Arora (1) were dismissed. Abhishek then added 62 runs with Saurabh Dhaliwal, who was out for 22 runs.
Abhishek’s Fourth Century in SMAT Career
Punjab’s Ramandeep Singh scored 8 runs off 4 balls, but it was Abhishek who dominated with 106 runs off 29 balls, leading the team to victory. He achieved this at a strike rate of 365.52. Meghalaya’s five bowlers had an economy rate of over 12.50. Abhishek’s 106 was his fourth century in his SMAT career, making him the player with the most centuries in the tournament’s history.
Abhishek Matches Urvil’s Record
Abhishek matched Urvil Patel’s record for the fastest T20 century, both having scored a century in 28 balls in SMAT. Urvil had previously achieved this feat against Tripura. This is now the fastest century by any Indian batter in T20s.
Globally, the record for the fastest T20 century is held by Estonia’s Sahil Chauhan, who made a century off 27 balls against Cyprus this year. In India, the record is now shared by Urvil and Abhishek. Before them, Chris Gayle held the record for the fastest T20 century in IPL, scoring off 30 balls for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2013.
Baroda Sets T20 Record with Highest Score
On Thursday morning, Baroda set the highest T20 score in history by scoring 349 runs in 20 overs against Sikkim. Bhanu Pania played an outstanding inning of 134* runs off 51 balls, including 4 fours and 15 sixes.
Baroda won the match by a huge margin of 263 runs in Indore, hitting 18 fours and 37 sixes. In total, they scored 294 runs from boundaries alone, the most in T20 history.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s Hat-trick Wins It for Uttar Pradesh
In another match of SMAT, Uttar Pradesh’s captain, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, took a hat-trick. He claimed 3 wickets for just 6 runs in 4 overs. In the match at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, Jharkhand opted to bowl first. Uttar Pradesh posted 160 runs, losing 8 wickets, with Rinku Singh scoring 45. Jharkhand’s Bal Krishna took 3 wickets, while Vivekanand Tiwari claimed 2.
At 116/5 in 16 overs, Jharkhand was well-placed, with Anukul Roy set at the crease. In the 17th over, Bhuvneshwar took a hat-trick and conceded no runs. Jharkhand’s score fell to 116/8. Anukul remained unbeaten, scoring 91 runs before being dismissed in the 20th over. After his departure, Jharkhand was all out for 150 runs, losing the match by 10 runs in a close encounter.