He took 44 balls to achieve this feat.
After losing the first two games, Pakistan were on the brink of losing the bilateral series in New Zealand. But a hero, Hasan Nawaz, rose to the occasion in his debut international series to save Pakistan from another embarrassing defeat.
After consecutive ducks in the series, the 22-year-old slammed the fastest T20I century by a Pakistan batter. He took 44 balls to achieve this feat. His blistering knock included 10 boundaries and seven sixes, shooting his strike rate to 233.33.
The record of the fastest T20I century by a Pakistan batter was previously held by Babar Azam who reached the three-figure mark in 49 balls in 2021 against South Africa.
Riding on Mark Chapman’s 94, New Zealand set up 204 in 19.4 overs during the third T20I. Mohammad Haris (41) and skipper Salman Agha (51 not out) added valuable runs. Pakistan went on to win the match by nine wickets and four overs to spare. With two more matches to go, the Men in Green can revive this away tour, or at best, avoid another humiliation after a disappointing campaign in the Champions Trophy 2025.
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Though the opening batter got out on back-to-back ducks, he proved the selection choice with a match-winning century at Auckland.
Nawaz has played only 16 games scoring about 700 runs in the Pakistan domestic circuit. But numbers don’t do justice to his phenomenal six-hitting capabilities.
In the 2020 Kashmir Premier League, the then 20-year-old helped his team Mirpur Royals clinch the trophy. Nawaz was the second-highest run-getter with 241 runs maintaining an average of 40.16 in six matches. He returned with two half-centuries in the series. He struck 20 sixes, just three short of the highest number of sixes smashed in the tournament.
Playing in an international series without veteran players like Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Nawaz has the right opportunity to continue the momentum from today’s match. With more such stylish knocks, he can cement his place in the national set-up to bring laurels to Pakistan.
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