'Fastest T20I centurion' Sahil Chauhan calls himself a Rohit Sharma fanboy after creating history
Published - 21 Jun 2024, 03:48 PM | Updated - 24 Aug 2024, 01:24 AM
Sahil Chauhan, an Estonian cricketer of Indian origin, made headlines by breaking the record for the fastest T20 hundred. Sahil Chauhan said that he has been a big fan of veteran opener Rohit Sharma since he watched him play, calling the Indian skipper his inspiration.
Sahil Chauhan scored a hundred in just 27 deliveries against Cyprus on June 17, Monday. The right-handed batter scored an unbeaten 144 runs off 41 balls with the help of 18 sixes and six fours. He surpassed Chris Gayle's previous record of a 30-ball century for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the 2013 IPL.
The 32-year-old also broke Namibia’s Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton’s (33 balls) record for the fastest T20I century. Estonia was struggling at 40 for three in the fifth over when Chauhan came in at No. 5. He guided his team to chase down the 192-run target with his knock. Estonia won by six wickets with seven overs remaining.
Estonia's Sahil Chauhan sets record with fastest T20I century in just 27 balls!
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That's not it, he also shattered the record for most sixes in a men's T20I, smashing 18 in his 41-ball innings.
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Rohit Sharma Is A Brilliant Player - Sahil Chauhan
After the match, Sahil Chauhan expressed his admiration for Indian captain Rohit Sharma. Chauhan revealed that he has been a fan of Rohit Sharma since he first saw him play. He stated that he has learned a lot from Rohit, adding that his hook shots are his favorite.
"I've been a big Rohit Sharma fan since I watched him play. He's a brilliant player who doesn't take any pressure. Regardless of the situation, he always plays his game. I have learned a lot from him. His hook shots are my favourite," said Chauhan.
My Uncle Was The Reason I Moved To Estonia - Sahil Chauhan
Sahil Chauhan, who hails from Manakpur Devilal village in Haryana, shared his journey from India to Estonia and how he discovered cricket there. Chauhan said that he moved to Estonia because of his uncle's restaurant business and started playing cricket in 2019 out of boredom.
"My uncle was the reason I moved to Estonia. He has a small restaurant business and that is where I work. I started playing here in 2019. I was really bored so I started searching on Google for cricket in Estonia (and) I found a team's contact information and called them. I asked, 'Are you playing cricket?' They replied, 'yes, we play cricket'." "I said, 'Are you serious about this?' and they responded, 'yes'. That's how I started playing the game here," Chauhan added.
Sahil Chauhan mentioned that he has been playing cricket since childhood, starting around the age of 6 or 7 in his village in India, where he regularly participated in gully cricket.
“I used to play a lot of cricket in my village back in India. I started right from the age of 6-7, playing gully cricket and never really stopped,” he said.
Rohit Sharma holds the record for the highest individual score in ODI cricket with an unbeaten 264 against Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens in 2017. The 37-year-old opening batter has the record for the most double centuries in one-day internationals.
