Baroda slams highest total in history of T20s during Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy clash against Sikkim

Baroda recorded the highest total in T20 cricket history, amassing 349 runs for the loss of five wickets against Sikkim in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the Emerald High School Ground in Indore on Thursday. The Baroda team broke the record previously held by Zimbabwe, who scored 344/4 against Gambia in Nairobi in October.

In the match, Baroda skipper Krunal Pandya won the toss and elected to bat. Under his leadership, the team posted a mammoth total of 349/5 in their 20 overs. The standout performances came from Bhanu Pania (an unbeaten 134 off 51 balls, including 15 sixes and 5 fours), Shivalik Sharma (55 off 17 balls, with 6 sixes and 3 fours), Abhimanyu Singh (53 off 17 balls, featuring 4 boundaries and 5 sixes), Vishnu Solanki (50 off 16 balls, with 6 sixes and 2 fours), and Shashwat Rawat (43 off 16 balls, including 4 sixes and 4 fours).

Baroda set another record by hitting 37 sixes in an innings, surpassing Zimbabwe's previous record of 27 sixes in their match against Gambia. The Baroda Ranji team is in remarkable form in the Ranji Trophy, currently leading Group A with four outright wins in five games. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, they have now secured six victories from seven matches.

Elsewhere, Thursday's action saw Punjab opener Abhishek Sharma score the second-fastest T20 hundred in the format's history. The left-hander smashed an unbeaten 106 off just 29 balls, laced with 11 sixes and 8 fours, against Meghalaya at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium C in Rajkot.

Abhishek's century, achieved in just 28 balls, equalled the record set by Gujarat wicketkeeper-batter Urvil Patel in the same tournament last week during a match against Tripura. Abhishek's blistering knock came at an astonishing strike rate of 365.52. (ANI)