Baroda broke the record for the highest total in men’s T20 cricket, posting 349/5 against Sikkim in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in Indore on Thursday. They surpassed Zimbabwe’s previous record of 344/4, set against Gambia in Nairobi in October.
Baroda’s innings included a record 37 sixes, smashing the previous record of 27 set by Zimbabwe in the same match against Gambia.
Shashwat Rawat, recently part of India A in the Duleep Trophy, and Abhimanyusingh Rajput, who hit a 19-ball half-century, laid the foundation with a 92-run opening partnership in the powerplay. Bhanu Pania took charge after that, scoring a blistering century off 42 balls, including five fours and 15 sixes. His first fifty came off 20 balls, and his second off 22. Pania finished with 134* off 51 balls, striking at 262.75. This was his first white-ball hundred in domestic cricket, in his 39th innings.
Shivalik Sharma (55 off 17 balls) and wicketkeeper-batter Vishnu Solanki (50 off 16 balls) also contributed with quick-fire half-centuries. Solanki was dismissed in the 17th over, just as Baroda neared the 300-mark. Despite missing Hardik Pandya, Baroda set a new world record, with Sikkim’s bowlers struggling to contain the onslaught. Four of the seven bowlers Sikkim used conceded more than 20 runs per over.
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In response, Sikkim managed just 86/7 in their 20 overs, with only two of their batters reaching 15 runs. Baroda’s spinners—Krunal Pandya, Ninad Rathva, and Mahesh Pithiya—claimed five wickets between them, sealing a 263-run victory, the fourth-largest margin in T20 history.
Baroda have had an outstanding domestic season, leading Group A in the Ranji Trophy with four wins from five matches. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, they had won five of their six matches before Thursday.