5 records broken in Nepal's unbelievable 273-run T20I win over Mongolia
In what was an utter show of carnage, Nepal thrashed Mongolia by a huge margin of 273 runs in the opening match of the ongoing Asian games Men's T20I 2023 at Pingfeng Campus Cricket Field in Hangzhou on Wednesday, September 27.
After Mongolian skipper Luvsanzundui Erdenebulgan won the toss, he asked Nepal to bat first. It was a brave decision by Mongolia, especially considering that it was their maiden T20I appearance.
As far as Nepal are concerned, they were recently seen at the Asia Cup 2023 and battled the likes of India and Pakistan.
The huge disparity between Nepal and Mongolia was evident as the Nepal batters dominated the opposition and made a record 314/3 in their 20 overs. Despite their openers failing to get past the 20-run mark, No. 3 batter Kushal Malla racked up 137* runs off only 50 balls.
Skipper Rohit Paudel also chipped in with a 27-ball 61 while lower-order batter Dipendra Singh played a blinder of an innings and made 52* runs off only ten deliveries.
The match proved to be a contest between men against boys as the Nepal bowlers rattled the Mongolian batting unit for a mere 41 runs in the second innings.
T20I matches like these are bound to tumble a slew of records. On that note, here are five of the most significant records that were broken during Nepal's unbelievable 273-run T20I victory over Mongolia on Wednesday.
#5 Most sixes in a T20I innings
The Nepali batters made full use of the short boundaries in Hangzhou. Moreover, the gentle pace offered by the Mongolian bowlers only made it easier for them to hit boundaries at will.
The Nepal batters hit a total of 14 boundaries and as many as 26 maximums in their 20 overs. This is now the most number of sixes a team has hit in a T20I innings.
The record was previously held by Afghanistan, who hammered 22 sixes in a T20I game against Ireland in February of 2019.
#4 First-ever team to score 300+ total
The Men in Dark Blue tormented the inexperienced Mongolian bowling attack and piled up a first-innings total of 314/3.
Of their 314 runs, 285 were made by the batters while 29 came via extra runs the bowlers gave up. Nepal breached the 300-run mark in the 20th over and became the first-ever team to score over 300 runs in a T20I innings.
Consequently, their 314/3 is now the highest team total ever recorded in a T20I innings.
#3 Fastest T20I century
Born in 2004, 19-year-old Kushal Malla made history on Wednesday. The left-hander smashed a 34-ball ton against Mongolia, scoring the fastest T20I century ever. He surpassed Rohit Sharma, David Miller and Sudesh Wickramasekara, who had all previously held the record. All three batters took 35 balls to make their fastest T20I ton.
Malla's unbeaten knock of 137 off just 50 balls included an astonishing 12 sixes and eight fours.
#2 Largest victory in T20Is (by runs)
After making a phenomenal 314 with the bat in the first innings, the Nepali bowlers wreaked havoc with the ball. With all three of Sandeep Lamichhane (2/7), Karan KC (2/1) and Abinash Bohara (2/2) taking two wickets apiece, Nepal skittled out Mongolia for a mere 41 in 13.1 overs.
Nepal's 273-run victory is now the largest-ever win registered by a team in a T20I match (by runs remaining).
The record was previously held by the Czech Republic when they steamrolled Turkey by a margin of 257 in a Continental Cup game in 2019.
#1 Fastest T20I fifty
Yuvraj Singh's long-standing record was also finally broken on Wednesday when Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee smashed the fastest T20I fifty.
During his unprecedented knock of 52* off ten deliveries, Dipendra completed his sixth T20I half-century in only nine deliveries. His nine-ball fifty is now the fastest half-century in all T20 games, let alone T20 internationals. En route to his knock, Dipendra clobbered eight maximums.
Yuvraj Singh's 12-ball 50 against England at the T20 World Cup 2007 is now the second-quickest fifty in T20Is.