Abhishek Sharma smashed a record-breaking 108 off just 34 balls as the Indian cricket team beat Afghanistan by 127 runs in the third AFG vs IND T20I 2026 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday.
India posted 221/7 after being asked to bat before bowling Afghanistan out for 94 in 14.1 overs to complete a 3-0 sweep of the Friendship Cup 2026 series.
Abhishek reached his century in just 30 balls – the third-fastest hundred in men’s T20I cricket and the quickest by a batter from a Full Member nation.
The knock also saw Abhishek eclipse Rohit Sharma’s previous Indian record of a 35-ball T20I century, set against Sri Lanka in 2017.
Abhishek struck nine fours and 11 sixes during his innings, while Sanju Samson made 50 off 35 balls as the Indian openers added 142 runs in just 9.5 overs.
India raced to 50 in only 3.3 overs, with Abhishek reaching his fifty in 16 balls soon after.
The left-hander continued his assault as India brought up 100 without loss at the end of the six-over powerplay. Abhishek was already on 76, while Samson had made 24.
Abhishek needed only another 14 deliveries to move from 50 to 100, reaching three figures with nine fours and 10 sixes.
Rashid Khan eventually ended his innings in the 10th over, with Abhishek departing for 108 off 34 balls at a strike rate of 317.64.
Tilak Varma was run out for two soon afterwards before Samson brought up his half-century from 34 deliveries.
Azmatullah Omarzai dismissed Samson for 50 in the 14th over and also accounted for Shivam Dube.
Captain Shreyas Iyer kept the scoreboard moving with 29 off 20 deliveries, including two sixes.
Afghanistan struck regularly towards the end of the innings, but India crossed the 200-run mark in the 17th over before eventually finishing on 221/7.
Omarzai was Afghanistan’s most successful bowler with 2/27, while Rashid Khan and Abdollah Ahmadzai picked up one wicket each.
In the chase, Afghanistan lost Rahmanullah Gurbaz for 15 to Axar Patel in the fourth over.
Axar struck again later in the same over to remove Sediqullah Atal for one before Jasprit Bumrah bowled Darwish Rasooli for a duck, leaving Afghanistan 39/3.
Captain Ibrahim Zadran made 25 off 16 balls but was dismissed by Yash Thakur as Afghanistan slipped to 47/4 inside the powerplay.
Azmatullah Omarzai and Noor ul Rahman briefly attempted to rebuild the innings before Ravi Bishnoi removed Noor for 11.
Nitish Kumar Reddy then ran through the lower order, dismissing Mohammad Nabi for eight, Omarzai for 17 and Mujeeb Ur Rahman for a duck.
Bishnoi accounted for Rashid Khan and Abdollah Ahmadzai to complete figures of 3/26, while Nitish returned 3/25 as Afghanistan were bowled out for 94 in 14.1 overs.
Abhishek finished as the leading run-scorer in the three-match series with 229 runs at a strike rate of 269.41, while Nitish ended as the leading wicket-taker with six scalps.
India’s next assignment will be a one-off T20I against Japan in Sano on Tuesday before they begin their Asian Games 2026 campaign in the quarter-finals on September 28 against the Group A runner-up.
AFG vs IND, T20 2026 match 3, brief scores: India 221/7 in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 108, Sanju Samson 50; Azmatullah Omarzai 2/27) beat Afghanistan 94/10 in 14.1 overs (Ibrahim Zadran 25; Nitish Kumar Reddy 3/25, Ravi Bishnoi 3/26) by 127 runs.
READ MORE: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/afghanistan-vs-india-t20-cricket-2026-match-3-report
