Hyderabad, Nov 30 (NationPress) Punjab's captain Abhishek Sharma displayed a stunning performance with a record-setting half-century, paving the way for his remarkable 32-ball century during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy against a seasoned Bengal bowling lineup at the Gymkhana Ground on Sunday.

From the very first ball, Abhishek was in explosive form, reaching a 12-ball half-century, ranking as the joint third-fastest fifty and the joint second-fastest by an Indian in men's T20 cricket. He struck five fours and five sixes, facing only one dot ball to achieve this milestone.

The 25-year-old left-handed batsman became the fifth cricketer to score a fifty in just 12 balls in T20 format. His mentor, former Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh, was the first to accomplish this during the 2007 T20 World Cup match against England, where he famously hit six sixes in one over off Stuart Broad.

The record for the fastest fifty in men’s T20 cricket is held by Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee, who achieved it against Mongolia at the Hangzhou Asian Games in September 2023. India’s Ashutosh Sharma is next on the list with an 11-ball fifty for Railways against Arunachal Pradesh in the current season's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Chris Gayle also reached this benchmark in the Big Bash League while playing for the Melbourne Renegades against the Adelaide Strikers in January 2016. Later, in October 2018, Afghanistan’s Hazratullah Zazai matched this record while representing Kabul Zwanan against Balkh Legends in an Afghanistan Premier League match held in Sharjah.

Abhishek continued his aggressive approach, notching up a century in just 32 balls, hitting 11 sixes and seven fours. However, he narrowly missed the record for the fastest men’s T20 century, which is held by Estonia’s Sahil Chauhan, who achieved it in 27 balls.

This marks the third-fastest T20 century by an Indian, and Abhishek shares the record for the second-fastest T20 century, with a previous 28-ball hundred, matching Urvil Patel, who achieved it for Gujarat against Tripura in the last season's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Opening the innings alongside Prabhsimran Singh, who scored 70 off 35 balls, Abhishek concluded with a formidable 148 off just 52 balls. Punjab finished their innings at 310/5 in 20 overs, marking the second-highest total in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy history, trailing Baroda’s 349/5 against Sikkim in Indore in December 2024.