Rohit Sharma smashed his first-ever T20I half-century for India against South Africa at the 2007 edition of the ICC T20 World Cup. The Mumbaikar teamed up with skipper MS Dhoni and powered India to a match-winning total. Rohit struck seven fours and two sixes in his entertaining knock. Interestingly, Dinesh Karthik deserves some credit for every boundary the Hitman fired from his willow. Why? Because Rohit notched up his first-ever international half-century using Karthik’s bat at the T20 World Cup.
Giving a Rohit-DK twist to his maiden T20I century story on Sunday, Indian opener Abhishek Sharma revealed that he played a stellar knock for India with Shubman Gill’s bat. Abhishek had asked his childhood friend and ex-U19 teammate to give him his bat for the 2nd T20I between India and Zimbabwe. After a run-fest season in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Abhishek suffered an early setback as the opener recorded a five-ball duck in his debut game for India in Zimbabwe.
ALSO READ: Shubman Gill reacts as Samson and Jaiswal’s arrivals set to give India fresh selection headaches in Zimbabwe series
Abhishek gives special thanks to Shubman’s bat
Abhishek was under pressure when India squared off against the hosts in the 2nd T20I. However, the Indian opener knew what he had to do next. “Today I played with Shubman Gill’s bat. So a special thanks to the bat as well. And this happens, I think, from the under-12 days. Whenever I think like, this is a pressure game or this is, you know, a match where I should perform, I usually take his bat. Even in the IPL also, I usually ask for one bat. And today he gave me his bat. So I think it went really well,” Abhishek said in the post-match press conference.
Shubman and Abhishek have a lot in common
Rising star Abhishek slammed India’s third-fastest ton in the shortest format of the game. The SRH star is the first Indian batter to complete an international century by smoking back-to-back three sixes. Abhishek’s teammate and long-time friend, Indian skipper Gill, notched up his One Day International (ODI) double century against New Zealand by hitting consecutive sixes.
Indian opener rewrites history books
Abhishek took only 46 balls to slam his maiden century for the two-time T20 World Cup winners yesterday. Abhishek and KL Rahul hold the record for scoring the joint third-fastest century for India. Batting icon Rohit has the distinction of registering the quickest ton by an Indian batter in T20Is. Rohit completed his record ton in 35 balls against Sri Lanka in 2017.
Strike rate of over 317!
Suryakumar Yadav is placed second on the list with his 45-ball century against the same side in 2023. In his last 23 balls, opener Abhishek smashed 72 runs at a strike rate of 317.39. His record-breaking century sealed India’s 100-run win over Zimbabwe. Abhishek-starrer India will meet the hosts in the 3rd T20I of the five-match series on Wednesday.
Watch Ind vs Zim T20 matches LIVE on OTTplay. Click Here to Subscribe.
Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
