Top 5 highest totals in T20s in India ft. Baroda vs Sikkim
Baroda scripted history in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), registering the highest-ever T20 total in the history of the game. They scored a record-breaking 349/5 in their allotted 20 overs against Sikkim and crushed the opposition by a massive margin of 263 runs.
The side surpassed Zimbabwe’s 344/4 against Gambia which they achieved last month in Nairobi. The Baroda batters came out all guns blazing right from the outset and kept plundering sixes for fun. In the process, they also broke several records, which also included the most sixes (37) in a T20 match.
This is also the first time a 300+ score has been posted in a SMAT game. The revolution of T20 cricket has been quite staggering in the last couple of years, with several massive scores being posted all across T20 leagues and international matches.
While 200 was considered a match-winning score not long before, scores in excess of 250 have been chased down in the recent past.
With Baroda registering the highest-ever T20 score, let us have a look at the top five totals in T20s in India:
#5 Sunrisers Hyderabad - 277 vs Mumbai Indians in Hyderabad, 2024
The IPL 2024 runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad produced a batting fest during the previous season of the cash-rich league and shattered records one after the other.
It was on the back of their explosive batting line-up that the Sunrisers managed to post several big scores in the tournament. They posted a massive 277 against the Mumbai Indians in a league game at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
SRH went hammers and tongs right from the outset. They lost Mayank Agarwal early but Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma continued their dominance and put the MI bowling attack on the mat.
Travis raced his way to a 24-ball 62 while Abhishek scored a 23-ball 63. The South African middle order duo of Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen continued the onslaught as SRH ended up registering 277 in their allotted 20 overs.
Klaasen remained unbeaten on 80 off 34 deliveries while Markram chipped in with 42. Mumbai Indians gave a good account of themselves in the batting department but the target proved a bit too much in the end as SRH pulled off a 31-run win.
#4 Afghanistan - 278 vs Ireland in Dehradun, 2019
Afghanistan held the record for the highest T20 score for a considerable amount of time before it was broken time and again in the last year and a half. Afghanistan used to play their home games in India and they ended up achieving the feat against Ireland in Dehradun.
It was a massive 236-run opening stand between Hazratullah Zazai and Usman Ghani which set the platform for a massive score. Zazai was at his prolific best smashing the Irish bowlers to all corners of the park. His whirlwind knock of 162 came in a mere 62 deliveries, including 11 fours and as many as 16 sixes.
Ghani chipped in with a 48-ball 73 while Mohammad Nabi provided the late impetus with a five-ball 17. The target proved to be just a bit too much for Ireland as they were restricted to 194/6 on the back of some disciplined bowling by the Afghan bowlers.
#3 Sunrisers Hyderabad - 287 vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Hyderabad, 2024
Another staggering batting performance from the Sunrisers came against the perennial underachievers of IPL, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. In another boundary fest, SRH posted a mammoth 287 on the board to almost bat RCB out of the game.
A century partnership between the opening duo of Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head led the foundation for a monstrous score. Travis Head went on to smash a memorable century off just 39 deliveries, which included nine fours and eight sixes.
Abhishek was dismissed for 34 but Head got support in the form of Heinrich Klaasen who didn't disappoint. He continued to up the scoring rate and scored a 31 ball 67. Just when the RCB bowlers looked like restricting SRH to around the 250 mark, Abdul Samad went berserk. He provided the late-order impetus with a 10-ball 37 to take the score to 287.
RCB fought really hard and almost challenged SRH at one stage. Dinesh Karthik’s 35-ball 83 gave them some hope but eventually ended up losing by 25 runs.
#2 India - 297 vs Bangladesh in Hyderabad, 2024
In the last year or so, the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad has produced several high-scoring games. After the home franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad posted some massive scores in IPL 2024, it was the turn of the Indian national team to plunder the Bangladesh bowlers to all corners of the ground.
The Men in Blue posted the highest T20I score by a Test-playing nation when they smashed 297 in their allotted 20 overs in the final T20I. It was carnage right from the word go and the Bangladesh bowlers were at the receiving end of a brutal onslaught from the Indian batters.
Sanju Samson was at his dominant best, scoring his maiden T20I century while skipper Suryakumar Yadav blasted a 35-ball 75. Samson ended up with 111 off 47 deliveries which included 11 fours and eight sixes.
Hardik Pandya and Riyan Parag added the cherry on the top with some muscular strokes towards the end and took the score to 297. India ended up registering a convincing 133-run win on the back of an impressive bowling effort.
#1 Baroda - 349 vs Sikkim in Indore, 2024
Records kept tumbling at the Emerald High School Ground in Indore as Baroda posted the highest-ever T20 score against Sikkim in a SMAT game earlier in the day. They came out all guns blazing and treated the Sikkim bowlers like schoolboys.
Shashwat Rawat and Abhimanyu Singh provided a blistering start with a 92-run stand in just five overs. The boundaries kept flowing from the blade of each and every batter as Sikkim bowlers couldn't quite find any answers. Bhanua Pania went on to smash a 51 ball 134 which included 5 fours and 15 sixes.
Shiwalik Sharma and Vishnu Solanki also scored quickfire half-centuries as the carnage never really stopped. They also set the record for most sixes in a T20 innings, hitting 37 sixes in the match. Eventually, Baroda ended up winning by a massive margin of 263 runs.