Punjab opener Abhishek Sharma gave the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy an early jolt on Sunday, racing to a fifty in just 12 deliveries against Bengal in Hyderabad. The left-hander’s effort now sits alongside four others as the joint-third-quickest half-century in men’s T20 cricket and the joint-second-fastest by an Indian.
Sent in with fellow aggressor Prabhsimran Singh, Abhishek faced new-ball pair Mohammed Shami and Akash Deep and simply attacked. Over a furious four-over burst he struck five fours and five sixes, allowing only a single dot ball before nudging his way to the landmark. For context, a run rate of 15 an over is usually considered break-neck; Abhishek surged well beyond that, peppering both mid-wicket and extra-cover with equal ease.
“I just tried to keep things simple and react to the length,” he told the host broadcaster afterwards. “Some days the ball hits the middle straight away; this was one of them.”
The outright T20 record remains Nepal all-rounder Dipendra Singh Airee’s 11-ball blitz against Mongolia at the 2023 Asian Games. Railways batter Ashutosh Sharma sits second, also on 11 balls, from this season’s Mushtaq Ali competition. Abhishek now joins Yuvraj Singh (2007 World T20), Chris Gayle (BBL 2016), Hazratullah Zazai (Afghanistan Premier League 2018) and Estonia’s Sahil Chauhan (2023) in the 12-ball club.
Former India coach WV Raman, on commentary duty, called the innings “a textbook lesson in using the crease”, noting that Abhishek repeatedly shuffled deep to convert yorker-length deliveries into driveable half-volleys. “It’s not slogging,” Raman insisted. “It’s calculated risk backed by sound basics.”
Punjab’s management, understandably, were delighted but keen to keep feet on the ground. Head coach T. S. Randhawa reminded reporters, “One fine knock does not win a tournament; consistency does. Abhi knows that and is working hard on his game against spin.”
With the group stage only halfway done, Punjab will hope this momentum transfers into the middle overs where they have occasionally stalled. Bengal, meanwhile, must lick their wounds; their powerplay economy rate climbed to an uncomfortable 10.4 after this match, the highest in the group.
Records tend to fall quietly in domestic cricket, yet this one may echo for a while. A dozen balls, 50 runs, and a timely nudge to selectors that the 23-year-old remains a name to remember.
