No cricket lover or expert might have thought of the events that unfolded when Nepal took on Mongolia in the Asian Games opener as the Nepalese team scored 314 runs batting first in a T20I inning. The Nepalese batters made a mockery of the opposition bowlers hitting the balls over the boundaries for fun. They took full advantage of the short boundaries and flexed their muscles to complete effect.
This remarkable achievement surpasses the previous highest T20I total, which stood at 278/3, set by Afghanistan against Ireland in 2019. Several records were broken in the match including the record for the fastest T20I fifty which was made by Yuvraj Singh in the inaugural T20 World Cup.
The record was broken by Dipendra Singh Airee, the Nepalese all-rounder, who achieved his fifty in a mere nine deliveries. The match also saw the record for most sixes in a T20 inning being broken as Nepal’s inning saw as many as 26 sixes outstripping Afghanistan’s record of 22 sixes when they posted 278/3 in 2019.
Fastest T20I Hundred
Meanwhile, Kushal Malla outpaced T20I stalwarts like India’s Rohit Sharma and South Africa’s David Miller to claim the record for the fastest T20I century, achieving this feat in a mere 34 deliveries. Malla’s innings culminated with a score of 137 runs off 50 balls, featuring eight fours and an impressive tally of 12 sixes.
Chasing a daunting target of 315 runs Magnolia was nowhere in the competition as they were bowled out for just 41 runs as Nepal registered a victory by 273 runs. Here is the list of records broken during the match
Match in Numbers
0 – Number of times a team had scored 300 in a men’s T20 innings before this. Nepal’s 314 for 3 against Mongolia in the Asian Games is the first such instance. The highest T20 total before this was 278, scored by Afghanistan against Ireland in 2019 and by Czech Republic against Turkey also in 2019. These are also the highest totals in men’s T20 internationals.
34 – Balls taken by Nepal’s Kushal Malla to reach his hundred, which is the fastest in T20Is. The previous record of 35 balls was jointly held by David Miller, Rohit Sharma, and Czech Republic’s Sudesh Wickramasekara.
26 – Sixes hit by Nepal batters in this match – the most in a T20 international by a team. The previous highest was 22, by Afghanistan against Ireland in Dehradun in 2019 and by West Indies against South Africa in Centurion earlier this year. These are also the most in any T20 match, beating the 23 sixes hit by Balkh Legend batters against Kabul Zwanan in the Afghanistan Premier League in 2018.
