The number of competing teams in T20I cricket rose from 18 to 104 in 2018, when the ICC decided to give international status to matches between all its Associate members. And a number of cricketers from these Associate teams have gone on to break a slew of records since then. Here are some from men's T20Is.
Most consecutive T20I wins: 14*
With a seven-wicket win over Greece in the T20 World Cup sub-regional Europe Qualifier, Spain broke the record for the most consecutive wins in men's T20Is. This was their 14th successive win, taking them past Malaysia and Bermuda's joint record of 13. During their streak, Spain have beaten Isle of Man, Jersey, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic and Greece. Their last defeat was in November 2022 when they lost to Italy by 33 runs.
Most runs scored in an over: 39
A record that, until recently, was shared by Yuvraj Singh, Kieron Pollard, Dipendra Singh Airee and Nicholas Pooran, now rests in the hands of Darius Visser, the Samoa batter who hit Vanuatu medium pacer Nalin Nipiko for six sixes in an over that went for 39 overall courtesy three no-balls. Visser ended up with 132 off 62 balls in a total of 174.
Most sixes in an innings: 18
Estonia batter Sahil Chauhan smashed 18 sixes in his record-breaking 144 not out off 41 balls against Cyprus in June this year. During the course of his knock, he also broke the record for the quickest T20I century - off just 27 balls. Chasing 192, Chauhan helped Estonia knock off the target in a mere 13 overs.
Best bowling figures: 7 for 8
Malaysia medium pacer Syazrul Idrus made history when he recorded the first-ever seven-for in T20Is against China in July 2023. He finished with figures of 7 for 8 as China were bundled out for 23. Before Idrus, this record belonged to Nigeria's Peter Aho who had taken 6 for 5 against Sierra Leone in 2021.
Fastest fifty: 9 balls
Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee smashed the record for the fastest T20I fifty against Mongolia. He got there off just nine balls, breaking the record previously held by Yuvraj Singh who had scored a fifty off 12 balls against England in the 2007 T20 World Cup.
Highest team score: 344 for 4
Against little-known Gambia, who had given walkover victories to their opponents in the first two matches of the T20 World Cup Africa sub-regional qualifiers, Zimbabwe ransacked 344 runs in 20 overs with Sikandar Raza raising their first ever century in the format. He got to three-figures in just 33 balls as records fell left, right and centre including most sixes (27) in an innings and most boundaries (57) in an innings.
Fastest century: 27 balls
Nepal's Kushal Malla first broke Rohit Sharma and David Miller's record of the fastest T20I century by getting there in 34 balls against Mongolia. Then Namibia's Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton bettered it by one ball five months later against Nepal. Sahil Chauhan then needed just 27 balls to reach the three-figure mark against Cyprus.
Estonia batter got to three digits in just 27 balls against Cyprus on Monday
Highest score on debut: 108*
For 14 years this record belonged to Ricky Ponting who had hit 98* in the first-ever T20I. It was breached three times in a span of four months in 2019 before Canada's Matthew Spoors took the honours with an unbeaten 108 on debut against Phillippines.
Most maidens in an innings: 4
Lockie Ferguson's four back-to-back maidens in this year's T20 World Cup match against PNG caused quite the stir, but it wasn't the first time such an event had occurred in T20Is. He equalled the record set three years previously by Canada's Saad Bin Zafar who finished with figures of 4-4-0-2 against Panama in a T20 World Cup Americas Region Qualifier match.
Youngest player*: 14y 16d
Romania's Marian Gherasim's 14th birthday gift came in the form of an international debut against Bulgaria, making him the youngest player (*among those with an officially recorded date of birth) to debut in a T20 international game.
Highest career average: 63.35*
India's Virat Kohli and Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan had been tussling for this record for a good three years. Enter Malawi's Sami Sohail, who now has the highest average in T20I cricket history (for a minimum of 1000 runs, *as of the date of publishing).
Oct 23, 2024 Updated after Zimbabwe's record