India captain on 31 January 2026 Suryakumar Yadav cemented his legacy as a T20 legend by smashing a major world record during the last T20I against. New Zealand in Thiruvananthapuram. His record-breaking performance set the perfect stage for India’s title defence T20 World Cup 2026will start on February 7.
Suryakumar Yadav rewrites the record books in IND vs NZ 5th T20I
Suryakumar Yadav officially became the fastest batsman to reach 3000 runs in terms of balls faced in T20I history. He reached this stage with only 1822 balls, surpassing the previous record – 1947 balls. UAEof Muhammad Wasim. With this achievement, he joins the elite club as the third Indian to cross 3000 T20I runs and follows in the footsteps of legends. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Interestingly, he reached it much earlier than his predecessors, with Rohit needing 2149 balls and Kohli 2169 balls to reach the same milestone.
Fastest to 3000 T20I runs (Balls faced):
- Suryakumar Yadav (India): 1822 balls
- Muhammad Wasim (UAE): 1947 balls
- Jos Buttler (England): 2068 balls
- Aaron Finch (Australia): 2077 balls
- David Warner (Australia): 2113 balls
Dominance at Greenfield International Stadium during IND vs NZ 5th T20I
The record breaking moment came in just 30 deliveries off 63 runs as the Indian skipper unleashed his trademark 360-degree stroke play. Suryakumar raised the milestone with a boundary Loki Ferguson On the 13th, part of a partnership with the destroyer 137 Ishan Kishi disintegrated the kiwi bowling attack. His innings was laced with four boundaries and six powerful sixes and maintained a career strike rate of over 165, which remains the highest among all batsmen in the 3,000-strong club.
This record serves as a fiery warning to their opponents just seven days ago T20 World Cup 2026 begins. After going through a brief lean patch earlier in the year, Suryakumar’s return to peak form has been a huge boost for the defending champions. His ability to spin the batting against spin and punish the pace at will was on full display in Thiruvananthapuram, especially during a sequence where he took 23 runs on his own. Jacob Duffy. As India prepares to host the marquee event, their captain enters the tournament as the most effective and dangerous weapon in the shortest format of the game.
