Abhishek Sharma hits 30-ball century as India whitewash Afghanistan

India defeated Afghanistan by 127 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. With this victory, Shreyas Iyer's team whitewashed Afghanistan 3-0 in the three-match T20 series.

Batting first after losing the toss, India posted a massive total of 221 runs for the loss of seven wickets in the stipulated 20 overs. Opener Abhishek Sharma hit a whirlwind century for the team. The left-handed batter reached his century off just 30 balls, setting the record for the fastest century by a cricketer from a Test-playing nation in international T20 cricket.

Abhishek began his innings with a six off the very first ball of the match. He then rained fours and sixes on the Afghan bowlers. The Indian opener was eventually out for 108 runs off 34 balls. His innings included nine fours and 11 sixes.

Previously, the record for the fastest century by a cricketer from a Test-playing nation was held by New Zealand's Finn Allen and Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza. Both had scored centuries off 33 balls. However, Abhishek's 30-ball century set a new record in international T20 cricket.

If cricketers from all countries are taken into account, Abhishek's century is the third fastest in the world. Estonia's Sahil Chauhan tops the list. He scored a century off 27 balls against Cyprus. Turkey's Muhammad Fahad Bulgheria is second, having scored a century off 29 balls against Bulgaria.

Alongside Abhishek, Sanju Samson made an important contribution to India's innings. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 50 runs off 35 balls. His innings included two fours and four sixes. Captain Shreyas Iyer scored 29 runs off 20 balls.

For Afghanistan, Azmatullah Omarzai took two wickets with the ball. Rashid Khan and Abdullah Ahmadzai took one wicket each.

Chasing a target of 222 runs, Afghanistan came under pressure from the start. They lost wickets at regular intervals in the face of controlled bowling by the Indian bowlers. Eventually, Afghanistan were all out for just 94 runs in 14.1 overs.

Captain Ibrahim Zadran top-scored for Afghanistan with 25 runs. In his 16-ball innings, he hit four fours and one six. Azmatullah Omarzai scored 17 runs, while Rahmanullah Gurbaz contributed 15 runs.

For India, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Ravi Bishnoi were the most successful with the ball. Both took three wickets each. Axar Patel took two wickets, while Jasprit Bumrah and Yash Thakur took one wicket each.