Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 17: If Sunday offered a glimpse of Abhishek Sharma's comeback, Thursday witnessed the full spectacle as the left-hander smashed a century in just 30 deliveries in the final match of India's three-T20I series against Afghanistan, rewriting several records in the process.

Abhishek launched his assault early in the innings, taking on Azmatullah Omarzai in only the second over and hitting the medium pacer for two sixes and a four. Fazalhaq Farooqi was treated even more harshly, with Abhishek striking him for two sixes and four boundaries.

The half-century arrived only a couple of overs later, with another six off Mohammad Nabi. Abhishek needed just 16 deliveries to reach the milestone, making it the joint-fourth fastest T20I half-century by an Indian. It was also the sixth time the 26-year-old had scored a fifty in fewer than 20 deliveries.

However, the left-hander was only getting started.

Abhishek scored 51 runs from the next 14 deliveries he faced to bring up his century in just 30 balls. The feat took him to the top of the fastest T20I centuries list among players from Test-playing nations and third overall.

Only Estonia's Sahil Chauhan, who reached his century in 27 deliveries, and Turkey's Muhammad Fahad, who did so in 29 deliveries, remain ahead of him on the overall list.

Abhishek's explosive innings ended in the 10th over when he attempted to hit a Rashid Khan googly into the stands but edged the delivery into the gloves of wicketkeeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz.

By then, he had scored 108 runs from just 34 deliveries, with 102 of his runs coming through boundaries.

For India, the previous record for the fastest T20I century belonged to former captain Rohit Sharma, who reached the milestone in 35 balls against Sri Lanka in 2017. Abhishek's 30-ball century therefore broke Rohit's long-standing Indian record.