Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan etched his name into the record books on Thursday, January 8, by smashing the fastest half-century by an Indian in List A cricket during the Vijay Hazare Trophy Elite Group C match against Punjab in Jaipur. The 28-year-old right-hander reached the milestone in just 15 balls, surpassing the previous Indian record of 16 deliveries and underlining his reputation as one of the most destructive batters in domestic cricket.
Sarfaraz’s blistering knock placed him among elite company on the global stage as well. The overall world record for the fastest List A fifty is held by Sri Lanka’s Kaushalya Weeraratne, who took only 12 balls to reach the mark in a domestic match in Colombo back in 2005. While Sarfaraz fell short of the world record, his achievement stands as a landmark moment in Indian List A history.
Facing just 20 deliveries, Sarfaraz scored 62 runs, peppering the boundary with seven fours and five towering sixes. He struck at a staggering strike rate of 310 before being dismissed by leg-spinner Mayank Markande, who trapped him plumb in front. Sarfaraz’s cameo came during Mumbai’s 217-run chase, where his intent gave the innings early momentum.
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Sarfaraz was the third Mumbai batter to be dismissed. Earlier, Gurnoor Brar provided Punjab with crucial breakthroughs by removing Sarfaraz’s younger brother Musheer Khan and promising youngster Angkrish Raghuvanshi. Musheer contributed 21 off 22 balls, including one four and two sixes, while Raghuvanshi scored 23 from 32 balls, hitting three boundaries.
100*(47), 52*(40), 64(25), 73(22) in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
55(49), 157(75), 62(20) in Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Sarfaraz Khan is ruling Domestic Cricket – CSK got him for 75 Lakhs 💛 pic.twitter.com/FDRfdeGjSj
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) January 8, 2026
Meanwhile, fireworks were on display in Rajkot, where Hardik Pandya produced a breathtaking knock for Baroda in another Vijay Hazare Trophy fixture. Batting at No. 6, the Indian all-rounder smashed 75 off just 31 balls, reaching his half-century in 19 deliveries. Hardik struck nine sixes and two fours, finishing with a strike rate of 241.02.
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Hardik also shared a vital 90-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Priyanshu Moliya, who played a composed innings of 103 off 106 balls. After Hardik’s dismissal, wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma continued the onslaught, hammering 73 off 33 balls with eight fours and four sixes. Despite being omitted from the T20 World Cup 2026 squad, Jitesh made a strong statement with a powerful domestic performance.
