Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Abhishek Sharma smashed the fastest fifty in their match against Mumbai Indians. His half-century came off just 16 balls, to help his team to a massive 277/3 against Mumbai Indians in the eighth match of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) as well. His stunning knock of 63 off 23 with three boundaries and seven sixes, played a massive role in SRH posting the highest-ever IPL total. After the match, he credited a chat with West Indies batting legend Brian Lara for his brilliant knock as well.

Speaking after being named Player of the Match, Abhishek said in the post-match presentation, “I said in the previous interview too, the domestic season gives us a lot of confidence. The message for the batters is simple, go out and express yourself. The plan was to attack, I enjoyed batting with Head, he is one of my favorite batters, and I admire him.”

“He told me to go for it if it was in my zone. I am happy to be getting my chances, no matter what position I am playing. I had a chance to talk to Brian Lara last night and that helped me massively. I would rather bowl more in practice than bat, trying my best with bowling as well,” he further added.

However, his innings was the foundation of SRH’s massive total, as he put on a blistering 68-run stand with Head and then added 48 in just 18 balls with Aiden Markram (42) as well. Later on, Heinrich Klaasen’s blistering 80* off 34 balls helped SRH post a mammoth 277/3, the highest IPL total as well. Despite valiant knocks from Ishan Kishan (34) Tilak Varma (64) and Tim David (42*), MI eventually lost the game.