Auckland, March 21, 2025: Hasan Nawaz etched his name into the record books by scoring the fastest T20I century for Pakistan, leading the team to a historic run chase against New Zealand in the third T20I at Eden Park.
The young batter reached his hundred in just 44 balls, breaking Babar Azam’s previous record of 49 balls set in 2021 against South Africa. Nawaz’s blistering knock powered Pakistan to a sensational chase of 205 runs in just 16 overs, making it the quickest-ever successful 200-plus run chase in T20I history. The previous record was held by South Africa, who chased down 206 in 17.4 overs against West Indies in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.
- Pakistan’s successful chase of 205 was their second-highest in T20Is, only behind their 208-run chase against West Indies in 2021.
- Pakistan started aggressively, scoring 75 for 1 in the powerplay, their highest-ever score in the first six overs. By the 10th over, they had raced to 124 for 1, surpassing their previous best at that stage.
- Pakistan capitalized on Eden Park’s short boundaries, scoring 84 runs behind the wicket (deep third to fine leg)—the most ever recorded in that region in a T20I.
Hasan Nawaz, who had started his T20I career with two ducks, became only the fourth batter in men’s T20Is to follow up successive ducks with a century. The others in this rare club include Rilee Rossouw (2022), Rohit Sharma (2024), and Sanju Samson (2024). Nawaz is the first to achieve this feat in his third international game.
The explosive batter smashed seven sixes, equaling Mohammad Rizwan’s record for most sixes by a Pakistan batter in a T20I innings. Pakistan, as a team, cleared the ropes 12 times, marking their joint second-highest tally in a T20I innings.
Pakistan reached 100 in 8.1 overs, 150 in 12.2 overs, and 200 in just 15.5 overs—all their fastest in the format. They also equaled their fastest team fifty (in 4 overs) and improved their fastest team hundred (previously in 9 overs).
Notably, this was the third instance of Pakistan successfully chasing 200-plus runs with nine or more wickets in hand—the most by any team. They had earlier chased 204 against South Africa in 2021 (losing just one wicket) and famously defeated England in 2022 by ten wickets while chasing 200.
For New Zealand, this was the fourth time they failed to defend 200-plus runs in a T20I, three of those instances occurring at Eden Park.
With this record-breaking win, Pakistan has sent a strong message to the cricketing world ahead of the upcoming T20I tournaments, showcasing their explosive batting firepower and fearless approach in run chases.
