Railways' middle-order batter Ashutosh Sharma has broken Yuvraj Singh's record of the fastest T20 fifty by an Indian. Ashutosh hammered his fifty off just 11 balls against Arunachal Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in a Group C clash in Ranchi. Yuvraj had held the record for the last 16 years, having struck a fifty off 12 balls against England in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.
Ashutosh took the crease at the score of 131 for 4 with just five overs to go. He then went on to smash 53 off 12 studded with eight sixes and just one four, which came through the covers. He fell the next ball after reaching his record-breaking half-century and walked back with a stunning strike rate of 441.66. As many as four of his sixes sailed over the covers and long-off region, two went over long-on and two more cleared the leg-side boundary behind square. Railways amassed 115 runs in just the last five overs to finish on a commanding 246 for 5, and Arunachal Pradesh were bowled out for 119 in reply, losing by 127 runs.
Ashutosh, 25, was playing his second T20 for Railways and tenth overall. He had made his T20 debut in 2018 for Madhya Pradesh and last played the format in 2019. He has featured in just one 50-over game, for MP also in 2019, and is yet to make his first-class debut.
Yuvraj had held the record for the fastest fifty in T20 cricket overall also for 16 years before it was broken just last month by Dipendra Singh Airee from Nepal against Mongolia in the Asian Games in Hangzhou. Yuvraj's innings in Durban is also best remembered for his hitting six sixes in an over off Stuart Broad.