Abhishek Sharma’s 35-ball ton seals T20I series for India in Wellington
Abhishek Sharma hit 113 off 38 balls, with a century in 35 balls, as India beat New Zealand by six wickets in the third T20I at Hnry Stadium in Wellington on Tuesday, 27 October. The win gives India an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series, sealed with two games to spare.
India reached 199/4 in 13.2 overs, chasing New Zealand’s 198/3. Abhishek and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made 118 without loss in the six powerplay overs, which Wisden calls the highest powerplay score in men’s T20Is.
The innings
Abhishek struck nine fours and 11 sixes and reached his hundred in the 10th over with a boundary off Kyle Jamieson. It was his fourth T20I century, which ANI says is joint second-highest in T20I history. He now has 2,240 runs in 70 T20Is, at an average of 33.43 and a strike rate of 196.83.
Sooryavanshi, described by ANI as 15 years old, added 45 off 19 balls with four fours and four sixes. He opened because Ishan Kishan was out injured, having batted at No. 3 in the second T20I. The pair put on 133 for the first wicket.
Wisden lists Romania’s 116-0 in 5.4 overs against Serbia in 2021 as the previous best powerplay total. Business Standard adds that 118 is the highest for any full member nation, ahead of Australia’s 113 for 1 against Scotland. India captain Shreyas Iyer said he had not seen anything like 100 in five overs at international level.
New Zealand’s total
Batting first, New Zealand recovered well through Daryl Mitchell, who remained unbeaten on 89 off 52 balls, while Finn Allen made 40 off 25. India’s bowlers gave away only 52 runs in the last five overs, but the total proved well short on the night.
Series and what’s next
India also won the first two matches of the series, by four wickets each time: 230/6 against 225/4 on 22 October, and 181/6 against 180/5 on 24 October.
The fourth T20I is in Auckland on 30 October and the fifth in Hamilton on 1 November, both starting at 12:30 PM IST. An ODI series follows, with the first match on 4 November at 7:30 AM IST.
