Abhishek Sharma smashes fastest T20I century by Full Member batter

Indian opener Abhishek Sharma broke the record for the fastest T20 International century by a batter from a Full Member nation, reaching the milestone in just 30 balls against Afghanistan in the third T20I in Delhi.

Sharma launched an attacking assault on the Afghan bowlers, bringing up his half-century from 16 balls before reaching three figures with his next 14 deliveries.

His century surpassed the previous joint record of 33 balls, held by Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza and New Zealand’s Finn Allen. Raza reached the mark against Gambia in 2024, while Allen scored a 33-ball century against South Africa during the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Sharma also broke the record for the fastest T20I century by an Indian batter. The previous mark was held by former India captain Rohit Sharma, who scored a 35-ball century against Sri Lanka in 2017.

The Indian opener was dismissed in the 10th over after scoring 108 from 34 deliveries, including nine fours and 11 sixes. His boundary-hitting rate meant he struck either a four or six roughly once every 3.09 balls.

When Sharma was dismissed, India had reached 142-1, with the opener accounting for more than 76 per cent of the team’s total at that stage. His opening partner Sanju Samson contributed 34 from 25 balls.

Sahil Chauhan still holds overall record

While Sharma now holds the record for the fastest T20I century by a Full Member batter, the overall record remains with Estonia’s Sahil Chauhan.

Chauhan scored a century from just 27 balls against Cyprus in 2024, making it the fastest hundred in T20 International cricket.

Sharma’s 30-ball century therefore ranks as the fastest by a batter representing a Full Member nation, while Chauhan’s 27-ball effort remains the overall T20I record.

Third T20I century

The century against Afghanistan was Sharma’s third in T20 International cricket, putting him third among Indian batters for the most centuries in the format.

Rohit Sharma leads the list with five T20I centuries, followed by Suryakumar Yadav with four.

Sharma had also risen to second in the ICC T20I batting rankings before the Afghanistan match, with fellow Indian batter Ishan Kishan occupying the top spot.

His latest innings further underlined his aggressive approach in the shortest format, as he put Afghanistan’s bowling attack under pressure from the outset and reached his century in record time.