Akash Kumar Choudhary (X Photo)

NEW DELHI: Records tumbled in Surat on Sunday as Meghalaya’s Akash Kumar Choudhary etched his name into cricketing folklore, blasting the fastest-ever fifty in First-Class history — a stunning 11-ball half-century — during a Ranji Trophy Plate Group clash against Arunachal Pradesh.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The 25-year-old right-hander turned the match into a spectacle, surpassing England’s Wayne White, who held the previous record with a 12-ball fifty for Leicestershire against Essex in 2012. Akash’s breathtaking display of power-hitting not only shattered a world record but also left everyone in disbelief.

Coming in at No. 8 with Meghalaya already well-placed at 576 for 6, Akash wasted no time making history. He hammered eight consecutive sixes, including six in one over off bowler Limar Dabi, a feat rarely witnessed even in the shortest formats of the game. By the time Meghalaya declared their innings at 628 for 6, Akash was unbeaten on 50 off just 14 balls — an innings that redefined explosiveness in red-ball cricket.

What makes his feat even more remarkable is its context — this was not just the fastest fifty in Ranji Trophy history, but the quickest in First-Class cricket worldwide, outpacing all domestic and international benchmarks. The previous Indian record belonged to Bandeep Singh, who struck a 15-ball fifty for Jammu & Kashmir.Akash’s whirlwind knock comes at a time when the Ranji Trophy’s Plate Group has been producing extraordinary stories — from Bihar’s Vaibhav Suryavanshi becoming the youngest Ranji player ever to Goa’s Kashyap Bakle and Snehal Kauthankar sharing a record-breaking 606-run stand. Yet, Akash’s 11-ball masterpiece elevates the competition’s stature to an entirely new level.WATCH: Akash Kumar’s whirlwind knock in SuratAkash made his First-Class debut in December 2019 against Nagaland. He also featured in List-A and T20 matches that same year, representing Meghalaya against Sikkim and Gujarat respectively. His domestic journey has had its highs and lows — before this match, he had managed just two fifties in his previous ten innings, enduring a lean patch that saw him fail to cross 20 runs in five straight games.However, his recent return to form — with a fifty in Meghalaya’s last match against Bihar — hinted at a resurgence. Sunday’s innings confirmed it in emphatic fashion.Adding to his all-round value, Akash also opened the bowling and struck early, capping off what was truly a dream day in Surat. As Arunachal Pradesh trailed by 593 runs, Akash Kumar Choudhary’s name now stands immortal — as the man who turned 11 deliveries into cricketing history.

Fastest fifties in First-Class Cricket