Hasan Nawaz smokes fastest T20I century for Pakistan: Stats
What's the story
In a stunning exhibition of batting, Hasan Nawaz has broken the record for the fastest T20I century by a Pakistani batter.
The 22-year-old accomplished the feat in the third match of the five-match series between New Zealand and Pakistan at Auckland's Eden Park.
Nawaz scored his hundred in just 44 balls, breaking Babar Azam's previous record of 49 balls against South Africa in Centurion on April 14, 2021.
Match summary
Nawaz's explosive knock leads Pakistan to victory
Hasan Nawaz's explosive innings not only shattered records but also guided Pakistan to a thumping nine-wicket win.
He scored an unbeaten 105 runs off just 45 balls, guiding his side to chase down a target of 205 runs in just 16 overs.
Nawaz stitched crucial partnerships, adding 74 runs for the first wicket with Mohammad Haris (41) and an unbroken stand of 133 runs for the second wicket with captain Salman Ali Agha (51*).
Nawaz
First Pakistan batter with this feat
Nawaz smoked 10 fours and seven maximums en route to his unbeaten 45-ball 105.
He became the first Pakistani batsman to score a T20I century in New Zealand, as per ESPNcricinfo.
Notably, he bagged ducks in his first two T20Is. The opener of the ongoing series marked his international debut.
Meanwhile, Babar is the only other Pakistan with a T20I hundred against the Kiwis.
This was also Nawaz's maiden T20 hundred. The tally includes two fifties as well.
Information
Nawaz joins these names
Nawaz has overall become just the fourth Pakistan player with a T20I hundred. Besides Babar, he has joined the likes of Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Rizwan. Meanwhile, Babar is the only Pakistani with multiple T20I tons, having accomplished the feat three times.
Game breakdown
New Zealand's innings and Pakistan's bowling performance
Earlier in the game, Mark Chapman anchored New Zealand's innings with a commendable 94-run knock. However, he lacked support from other batsmen.
Pakistan's bowlers were instrumental in the victory, with fast bowler Haris Rauf leading the charge by taking three wickets for just 29 runs in four overs.
Shaheen Shah Afridi, Abbas Afridi, and Abrar Ahmed each contributed by dismissing two New Zealand batsmen.
Agha
Fifty for Agha
Skipper Salman Agha added the finishing touches with an unbeaten 51 off 31 balls (6 fours, 2 sixes).
This was his maiden fifty in T20Is as he has now raced to 165 runs across eight innings at 23.57.
115 of his runs have come against NZ at 57.50. This was overall his fifth half-century in the 20-over format.