Meghalaya’s Akash Kumar Choudhary produced one of the most astonishing displays in cricket history by smashing the fastest fifty in first-class cricket, reaching the landmark in just 11 balls during their Ranji Trophy Plate Group clash against Arunachal Pradesh at the CK Pithawala Ground in Surat on November 9.
The 25-year-old lower-order batsman’s whirlwind innings featured eight consecutive sixes, including six in a single over bowled by left-arm spinner Limar Dabi. This historic feat places Choudhary alongside cricketing greats Sir Garfield Sobers and Ravi Shastri, the only other players to have hit six sixes in one over in first-class cricket. South Africa’s Mike Procter had achieved six successive sixes as well, though across two overs.
Choudhary’s 11-ball fifty broke the previous record of 12 deliveries held by Wayne White of Leicestershire, achieved against Essex in 2012. Earlier, Clive Inman’s 13-ball half-century for Leicestershire in 1965 had stood as the benchmark for nearly half a century.
Walking in at number eight late in Meghalaya’s first innings, Choudhary began steadily with a dot ball and two singles. What followed was pure carnage – eight consecutive balls dispatched over the ropes, a sequence unprecedented in the history of the game. No batsman before him had ever struck more than six consecutive sixes in any form of professional cricket.
He ended unbeaten on 50 off 14 balls, a knock that featured no fours and eight sixes, prompting Meghalaya to declare their innings at 628 for six. His astonishing power-hitting complemented the earlier work of Arpit Bhatewara (207) and R Dalal (144), who had laid a strong foundation for the massive total.
Despite setting a new benchmark for speed, Choudhary’s 11-ball fifty took nine minutes, making it the second-fastest by time in first-class cricket. The record by time remains with Clive Inman, who reached his fifty in eight minutes back in 1965.
The extraordinary innings also makes Choudhary only the second player in Ranji Trophy history, after Ravi Shastri, to hit six sixes in an over. For the Meghalaya all-rounder, who made his first-class debut in 2019, the knock marks a career-defining moment. Before this match, he had scored 503 runs from 30 matches at an average of 14.37.
The fastest fifties in first-class cricket now read:
• 11 balls — Akash Kumar Choudhary (Meghalaya vs Arunachal Pradesh, 2025)
• 12 balls — Wayne White (Leicestershire vs Essex, 2012)
• 13 balls — Michael van Vuuren (Eastern Province B vs Griqualand West, 1984/85)
• 14 balls — Ned Eckersley (Leicestershire vs Essex, 2012)
• 15 balls — Khalid Mahmood (Gujranwala vs Sargodha, 2000/01)
This season’s Ranji Trophy Plate Group has seen a series of record-breaking performances, including Bihar’s Vaibhav Suryavanshi becoming the youngest player in tournament history and Goa’s Kashyap Bakle and Snehal Kauthankar registering the highest partnership in first-class cricket with 606 runs.
With his record-smashing innings, Akash Kumar Choudhary has now etched his name in cricket’s record books, reaffirming that extraordinary feats can emerge from any corner of the domestic circuit.
(With inputs from agencies)
