Highest total in T20: Know the massive totals in cricket’s shortest format

World cricket has often seen teams amassing huge scores and records being shattered at regular intervals in the shortest format of the game.

Be it T20Is or franchise cricket, batsmen dominating bowlers is a common sight.

The Baroda cricket team scripted history as they recorded the highest total in T20 cricket against Sikkim in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy group match at the Emerald High School Ground in Indore on December 5, 2024.

Electing to bat first, Bhanu Pania's unbeaten 51-ball 134, along with fifties from Shivalik Sharma (55) Abhimanyu Singh (53) and wicketkeeper-batter Vishnu Solanki (50) powered Baroda to 349/5 in their 20 overs to register the highest total in T20 cricket history.

Later, Baroda restricted Sikkim to 86/7 in their allotted overs to win the game by a massive 263 runs.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe holds the record for the highest total in T20 international cricket after they slammed 344/4 against Gambia in an ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier 2024 Group B match at the Ruaraka Sports Club Ground in Nairobi in October 2024. 

Opting to bat first, Zimbabwe rode on Sikandar Raza's unbeaten 133 off just 43 balls along with contributions from wicketkeeper-batter (62), Clive Madande (53 not out) and Brian Bennett (50) to post a record total in T20 cricket history.

Previously, Nepal held the record for the highest total in T20 international cricket after they smashed 314/3 against Mongolia in the 2023 Asian Games. Kushal Malla smashed the fastest century in T20Is during the innings, while Dipendra Singh Airee struck the quickest fifty in T20 internationals.

Nepal's 300-plus total is the only instance a team has managed to do so in the T20I stage and helped set up a 273-run win over Mongolia.

Suryakumar Yadav-led India registered the history books as they posted the second-highest total in T20 cricket. India put up a mammoth 297/6 against Bangladesh at Hyderabad, courtesy of opener Sanju Samson's 111 off just 47 deliveries. The fireworks for India continued with the skipper's 35-ball 75 knock.  

Meanwhile, the Pat Cummins-led Team Hyderabad scripted history as they recorded the highest total in T20 franchise cricket and the third-highest T20 total overall after they smashed 287/3 in their allotted 20 overs against hosts Team Bengaluru at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in April 2024.

In the same tournament, Hyderabad earlier hammered 277/3 against Team Mumbai to record the highest total in the Indian T20 League at that time.

Afghanistan recorded the third-highest score in T20 when they totalled 278/3 against Ireland in February 2019. Coincidentally six months later, the Czech Republic also notched up the same total (278/4) against Turkey in the Continental Cup.

The totals meant that the two teams scored at a rate of nearly 14 runs an over (13.9).

Punjab's 275/6 against Andhra Pradesh is the sixth-highest T20 team total in cricket's shortest format. It was the highest total by an Indian team before Team Hyderabad broke the record in the Indian T20 League 2024.

Melbourne Stars take the seventh spot in the highest T20 team score list by scoring 273/2 against Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash League 2021-22 followed by Titans' 271/3 against Knights in a league phase match of the CSA T20 Challenge 2022-23.

The Indian cricket team registered its highest T20I score of 260/5 against Sri Lanka in Indore in 2017 when then skipper Rohit Sharma’s 118 knocked the opposition out of the contest. India eventually won by 88 runs.

India’s domestic powerhouse Mumbai also joins the list and rounds off the top 10 scores. They racked up a score of 258/4 against minnows Sikkim in the 2019 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Highest total in T20 history

Featured photo: INDRANIL MUKHERJEE / AFP