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- By Gurmeet Batra
- Sun, 25 Jan 2026 11:20 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I: India opener Abhishek Sharma's tumultuous batting sent New Zealand reeling as he smashed the second-fastest fifty by an Indian in T20Is, reaching the milestone in just 14 balls during the Guwahati T20I.
This extraordinary feat falls just two balls short of legendary Yuvraj Singh's iconic 12-ball record set in 2007 against England.
This breathtaking display of Yuvraj Singh's power-hitting remains an integral part of cricketing folklore. This blistering knock came in India's victorious 2007 T20 World Cup campaign, which was marked by a blazing 50 off just 12 balls.
Fastest 50s for India in T20Is (By Balls):
12 balls – Yuvraj Singh vs England, Durban, 2007
14 balls – Abhishek Sharma vs New Zealand, Guwahati, 2026
16 balls - Hardik Pandya vs South Africa, Ahmedabad, 2025
17 balls - Abhishek Sharma vs England, Mumbai (Wankhede), 2025
18 balls – KL Rahul vs Scotland, Dubai (DSC), 2021
18 balls – Suryakumar Yadav vs South Africa, Guwahati, 2022
India's hard-hitting batter Hardik Pandya is third on the list with his tempestuous knock of 16 balls against South Africa in Ahmedabad on December 19, 2025.
Notably, Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee has carved his name in the record books by smashing the fastest fifty in T20I history, achieving the milestone in just nine balls against Mongolia at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou.
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In the match, Abhishek unleashed a relentless assault on New Zealand's bowling, turning the chase into a one-sided spectacle with his courageous pursuit and volatile batting. The Kiwi bowlers, including Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, and Ish Sodhi, were left floundering as Abhishek often breached the field or sent the ball flying into the stands.