Top 3 fastest fifties by an MI batter in IPL history ft. Hardik Pandya
Mumbai Indians (MI) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by seven wickets in one of the finest chases seen in the history of the IPL when the two teams met at the Wankhede Stadium on April 11.
RCB batted first and put up an otherwise mammoth total of 196/8 in their quota of 20 overs thanks largely to half-centuries from Rajat Patidar, skipper Faf du Plessis and veteran Dinesh Karthik.
MI, however, made light work of this target thanks to some blistering knocks from all their players, notably from Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav. The latter, who was playing just his second IPL game this season after his return from injury, dispelled doubts were there in the minds of spectators that he had lost his ability to hit big sixes.
In this listicle, we bring to you the three fastest fifties scored by an MI batter in the history of the IPL.
#3 Harbhajan Singh (19 balls)
Quite interestingly, it is former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh who comes third on this list thanks to the 19-ball half-century he scored against Kings XI Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium in IPL 2015.
Batting first, KXIP scored 177-5 in their quota of 20 overs helped by a 32-ball 61 by George Bailey. MI, however, left the chase until late and could not cross the line despite Harbhajan ending up with a 24-ball 64. He picked up five boundaries and six maximums in his innings.
#2 Hardik Pandya (17 balls)
Although Hardik Pandya comes second on this list, it is worth noting that three others have also scored fifties in 17 balls for MI in the past, including Suryakumar Yadav against RCB on April 11, Friday.
While Pandya achieved his feat against RCB at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru in IPL 2019, Kieron Pollard and Ishan Kishan also scored half-centuries against KKR in the 2015 and 2016 seasons respectively.
Suryakumar, as we know, bagged his in the game against Faf du Plessis' side on April 11 and played a major role in winning the game for MI in such a short period.
#1 Ishan Kishan (16 balls)
MI's wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan, who was also in the reckoning for India until quite recently, comes first on this list for a 16-ball half-century he scored against SRH in IPL 2021.
Played in Abu Dhabi, MI ran up a gigantic total of 235/9 in their quota of 20 overs thanks to Kishan's 32-ball 84 and Suryakumar Yadav's 34-ball 80.
SRH were unable to chase this target down, and fell short by 32 runs in the end, with Jasprit Bumrah, Nathan Coulter-Nile, and James Neesham picking up two wickets apiece.