The opening day of the Vijay Hazare Trophy was supposed to be all about Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. But even as their respective teams had to field first, Ishan Kishan, Sakibul Gani and Vaibhav Suryavanshi slammed record-breaking centuries in other matches. It all started with the 14-year-old prodigy smashing a ton off just 36 balls for Bihar against Arunachal Pradesh.
However, his record was soon broken by his captain, Sakibul Gani, who notched up the fastest century by an Indian in List A cricket. He came out to bat at number five and smashed a century off just 32 balls to finish unbeaten on 128 runs off just 40 deliveries with 10 fours and 12 sixes at a stunning strike rate of 320.
On the back of his blitzkrieg, Bihar created a world record, posting the highest ever total in List A cricket history. They posted a humongous total of 574 runs for the loss of six wickets in their 50 overs at a run-rate of 11.48, ripping apart the Arunachal Pradesh bowling line-up. Apart from Gani and Suryavanshi, who missed a well-deserved double century, Ayush Loharuka also notched up a century, scoring 116 runs off 56 balls as Bihar batters smacked a total of 38 sixes in their innings.
Ishan Kishan lights up Motera with his explosive knock
Ishan Kishan's career might have just turned for good, finally, after a two-year exile from Indian cricket. He first led Jharkhand to the title in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy while scoring a whirlwind century in the final. The southpaw, on the back of his stunning show in the tournament, made a comeback in the Indian team, directly in the T20 World Cup squad as a backup opener.
Now, in the opening game of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, while batting at number six, he smashed a 33-ball century against Karnataka, propelling Jharkhand to a massive total of 412/9 in their 50 overs. Kishan amassed 125 runs off 39 balls with seven fours and 14 sixes at an unreal strike rate of 320.51.
