Krunal Pandya's 26-Ball 50, The Fastest Half-Century On ODI Debut

Until Tuesday, left-arm spin bowler Krunal Pandya had played only T20 internationals, the last of which came back in November 2019. But Krunal Pandya’s terrific form with the bat in the Vijay Hazare Trophy forced the selectors to call him up in India’s ODI squad for the three-match series against England. And the 29-year old smashed a whirlwind half-century off 26 balls in the first ODI in Pune, becoming the fastest debutant to do so in ODIs.

Krunal Pandya came to the crease after India suffered a mini-wobble, losing Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, and Hardik Pandya in the space of a few overs. Pandya, who joined KL Rahul at the crease, was impressive and attacked all England’s bowlers, carting them to all parts of the ground. Krunal remained unbeaten at 58 off 31 balls, laced with seven fours and two maximums and reached a single off his 26th ball.

The Baroda-born cricketer raised his bat to the heavens, dedicating his outstanding knock to his dad, who passed away recently. In fact, he got surrounded by plenty of emotions to be unable to talk to the broadcasters. The 2020-21 Vijay Hazare Trophy saw Pandya hammer 388 runs in five matches at 129.33 with two centuries and two fifties.

Krunal Pandya breaks Jon Morris’ record of a fastest fifty by a debutant:

In the process, Krunal Pandya broke New Zealand’s Jon Morris’ record of the fastest fifty by a debutant in ODIs as he did so in 35 balls against England in 1990. The unbeaten stand of 112 from 61 deliveries between Pandya and Rahul left England to get 318 from their 50 overs. There were also half-centuries from Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan.

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