Sarfaraz Khan etched his name in the record books on Thursday (January 8) by scoring the fastest half-century by an Indian batter in List A cricket. The 28-year-old right-handed batter reached 50 runs in just 15 balls for Mumbai during their Vijay Hazare Trophy Elite Group C clash against Punjab in Jaipur.
The previous Indian record for the quickest List A fifty stood at 16 balls. Globally, the fastest half-century in List A cricket belongs to Sri Lanka’s Kaushalya Weeraratne, who achieved the milestone in 12 balls while playing for Ragama Cricket Club against Kurunegala Youth Cricket Club at Thurstan College Ground in Colombo on November 1, 2005.
On Thursday, Sarfaraz faced 20 balls in total, smashing 7 fours and 5 sixes to finish with 62 runs. He batted at a striking rate of 310 before being trapped lbw by Mayank Markande. Sarfaraz was the third Mumbai batter to be dismissed during their 217-run chase on Thursday.
Earlier, Gurnoor Brar had claimed the wickets of Sarfaraz’s younger brother Musheer Khan and Angkrish Raghuvanshi. Musheer scored 21 runs off 22 balls, hitting a four and two sixes, while Raghuvanshi contributed 23 runs from 32 balls, including three fours. Sarfaraz was the third Mumbai batter to be dismissed during their 217-run chase on Thursday.
Earlier, Gurnoor Brar had claimed the wickets of Sarfaraz’s younger brother Musheer Khan and Angkrish Raghuvanshi. Musheer scored 21 runs off 22 balls, hitting a four and two sixes, while Raghuvanshi contributed 23 runs from 32 balls, including three fours.
Hardik Pandya Smashes Nine Sixes
Star all-rounder Hardik Pandya featured in a Vijay Hazare Trophy match in Rajkot on Thursday and produced a blistering knock for Baroda, scoring 75 runs off just 31 balls while batting at No. 6. He brought up his half-century in only 19 deliveries and struck a total of nine sixes and two fours during his innings.
Hardik maintained an impressive strike rate of 241.02 and was involved in a rapid 90-run stand for the fifth wicket with Priyanshu Moliya, who anchored the innings with 103 runs from 106 balls. Alongside Hardik and Priyanshu, wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma also made a strong impact for Baroda in the ongoing contest.
Jitesh walked in after Hardik’s dismissal and smashed 73 runs from 33 balls. The right-handed batter, who was omitted from India’s T20 World Cup 2026 squad, peppered the boundary with eight fours and four sixes during his knock.
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