Nepal all-rounder Dipendra Singh Airee set a unique men's T20I world record during his side's match against Kuwait on Thursday (April 10).
In the third match of the Quadrangular series between Qatar, Hong Kong, Kuwait and Nepal, the latter two faced off in Mong Kok. Nepal elected to chase, and Kuwait put up an imposing 185-8 as Clinto Anto (41) and Meet Bhavsar (35) set up the innings before Bilal Tahir (32 off 13) provided the finishing touches.
Match 3, Kuwait vs Nepal
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Nepal openers Kushal Bhurtel (81) and Aasif Sheikh (53) then put on 127 for the first wicket, before both of them as well as Kushal Malla all departed after a further 15 runs.
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Dipendra Airee sets men's T20I world record
At No.5 walked in Dipendra Singh Airee, with 44 needed off 25 balls. He slammed 31 off 12, and by the time he was out had reduced the equation to 10 needed off 11 balls – which Rohit Paudel and Gulsan Jha duly completed.
When Airee got off the mark first ball with a single, he set a new world record. In 66 T20I innings, he is yet to be dismissed for a duck. This knock took him past West Indies T20 World Cup winner Marlon Samuels' mark of 65. The overall record for T20I cricket belongs to UAE Women's Esha Oza, who has played 86 innings without being out for a duck.
Airee is also the holder of the record for fastest T20I half-century, doing so in just nine balls against Mongolia at the 2023 Asian Games.
Most men's T20I innings without scoring a duck
| Name | Innings | Runs | Avg | SR |
| Dipendra Singh Airee | 66 | 1756 | 34.43 | 144.5 |
| Marlon Samuels | 65 | 1611 | 29.29 | 116.2 |
| Dinesh Chandimal | 61 | 1062 | 19.66 | 103.6 |
| Faf du Plessis | 50 | 1528 | 35.53 | 134.4 |
| Najmul Hossain Shanto | 47 | 960 | 22.85 | 108.4 |
| Vinoo Balakrishnan | 39 | 776 | 22.82 | 108.7 |
| Chamara Kapugedera | 38 | 703 | 22.67 | 119.0 |
| Harry Brook | 37 | 798 | 28.5 | 146.2 |
| Clinto Anto | 35 | 669 | 22.3 | 147.0 |
| Azyan Farhath | 35 | 784 | 28 | 84.7 |
| Ravi Bopara | 35 | 711 | 28.4 | 118.7 |
| Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming | 35 | 1420 | 45.8 | 152.5 |
- Australia's Jim Burke (44) and Australia/South Africa's Kepler Wessels (105) hold these records in men's Tests and men's ODIs respectively.
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