Ruturaj Gaikwad becomes first Indian with T20I ton against Australia
Young Indian opener Ruturaj Gaikwad has slammed his maiden century in T20 Internationals. The right-handed batter got to the three-figure mark while batting first in the 3rd T20I against Australia at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati. Gaikwad went all out after India were off to a patchy start. He eventually shared a century stand with Tilak Varma. Here are the key stats.
Gaikwad slams a 52-ball ton
Gaikwad started in his usual watchful manner. However, he duly punished the poor deliveries. The highlight of Gaikwad's knock was his scintillating strokes in front of the wicket. Gaikwad shared a crucial stand with Suryakumar Yadav before adding 141 runs with Tilak. Gaikwad completed his century in the final over off 52 balls. He smashed a 57-ball 123* (13 fours and 7 sixes).
Gaikwad owned the second half
Gaikwad had a strike rate of 100 in his first 22 balls (22 runs). The Indian batter wreaked havoc in the second half of his knock. In his next 35 balls, Gaikwad smacked 101 runs with a strike rate of 288.57.
Gaikwad scripts history in Guwahati
As mentioned, Gaikwad brought up his maiden T20I century in Guwahati. His previous-highest score in the format came in the last encounter. He smashed a 43-ball 58 as India won the 2nd T20I in Thiruvananthapuram. Gaikwad also played a 58-run knock against Ireland earlier this year in Dublin (Malahide). His only other T20I fifty-plus score came in 2022 (57 against South Africa).
Second-highest individual score for India in T20Is
Gaikwad recorded the second-highest individual score for India in men's T20Is. He is only behind Shubman Gill, who smashed an unbeaten 126 against New Zealand in Ahmedabad earlier this year. Gaikwad surpassed Virat Kohli, whose 122* came in the form of his maiden T20I ton (Asia Cup 2021). Gill, Gaikwad, and Kohli are the only three Indians with scores of over 120 in T20Is.
First Indian with this feat
Gaikwad has become the ninth Indian to slam a century in men's T20Is. The others are Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Kohli, Deepak Hooda, Gill, and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Only Rohit (4), Suryakumar (3), and Rahul (2) have multiple T20I tons. Notably, Gaikwad has become the only one with a ton against Australia in the format.
Second-most runs by an Indian in last three overs
Gaikwad hammered Aaron Hardie for 3 sixes and a four in the 18th over. It turned out to be a 25-run over. In the final over, Gaikwad slammed 3 sixes and 2 fours against Glenn Maxwell. As per Bharath Seervi, Gaikwad is the second Indian after Yuvraj Singh to have smacked over 50 runs in the last three overs of a T20I.
