Abhishek Sharma etched his name into cricket history by becoming the fastest batter to 1,000 runs in T20 Internationals - measured by balls faced.
The young
left-hander achieved the extraordinary milestone off just 569 deliveries during the fifth T20I against Australia at Brisbane's Gabba on Saturday, surpassing Australia's Tim David, who had held the previous record.
The 25-year-old also broke new ground for India, becoming the nation's quickest to 1,000 T20I runs in terms of matches played, reaching the feat in his 28th innings. Virat Kohli, who managed the landmark in 27 innings, remains the only Indian to do it faster by appearances.
Interestingly, India's T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav (573 balls) and New Zealand's Finn Allen (611 balls) now trail Abhishek on the all-time list of quickest scorers to the milestone by strike rate dominance.
Abhishek's achievement puts him among elite company that includes global fast-scorers such as Dawid Malan and Sabawoon Davizi - both of whom reached 1,000 runs in their 24th match, the fewest ever. Meanwhile, fellow Indians Sanju Samson (995 runs) and Tilak Varma (991 runs) are also closing in on the mark, though neither featured in the match at the Gabba.
Adding a touch of drama to the record-breaking night, Abhishek was dropped twice early in his innings, once before and once after reaching the milestone, yet showed composure to convert the opportunity into a moment for the history books.
The India star remains unbeaten on the night with 23 runs off 13 deliveries before rain forced the play to stop in Brisbane. India remain stranded on 52 for no loss in 4.5 overs, showcasing their batting might after put into bat by Australia captain Mitchell Marsh.
