Details of Individual 300 in Delhi T20 match

The reality of that Twenty20 300.
Nihau Kochie.

Indian Express.

Thursday, 9 February 2017.

PTG 2044-10360

Lalita Park is a mini-cricket island, roughly 60 m x 40 m in size with a 25 m boundary behind the batsman, embedded deep inside the mostly-commercial and always congested Laxminagar area of Delhi.  There they are still talking about Mohit Ahlawat’s 300 off 72 balls and his 39 sixes in a Friends Premier League (FPL) Twenty20 match earlier this week (PTG 2042-10348, 8 February 2017). 

Ahlawat’s brutal assault against a bowling attack, a mix of club and mohalla players, had Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise owners scrambling for the wicket-keeper batsman’s number and the international media hailing the son of a truck driver as the ‘Indian who hit the first-ever T20 triple hundred’.

For a first-time cricket-watcher at Lalita Park, what catches the eye is the concrete stage that is not far from the pitch. The ground is a dustbowl that is skirted by tightly-packed weather-beaten matchbox-size flats tied together by low-hanging electric cables. To get a sense of size, it would be safe to say that at least five full Lalita Parks can be fitted into the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

So it’s understandable that the FPL, an initiative by the area’s enthusiastic youth, isn’t recognised by the Delhi and District Cricket Association. The treasurer of the tournament, Manohar Yadav, beams as he relives Ahlawat’s sixes. “We play this tournament with the pink ball, they cost 300 Rupees ($A5.90, £UK3.50). We had to replace the ball nine times because Ahlawat hit it well beyond the sight screen. I believe some of his hits were over 100 metres”.

The news of the “72 ball, 300” has spread, as the tournament in its third edition has invited sudden interest. Locals standing behind the wicket-keeper can easily hear the chatter on the field. They also need to be cautious as sixes keep raining down on them. They are used to it.

Monstrous scores aren’t new to the spectators here. The scorer flaunts sheets that are littered with ‘4s’ and ‘6es’. Batsmen on these scorecards have only their first names recorded. The organisers say that since the umpire has to shout the name of the incoming batsman from the middle, it’s tough to catch the “full names”.

Regulars recall a local legend, lovingly called “Lara”, who scored a T20 double hundred last year. He isn’t playing this time. Today, Lalita Park has another minor hero. Sultan Ansari has hit 18 sixes in his 139 off 39 balls. In one particular over he hit 34 runs — five consecutive sixes and a four.

Just then a batsmen glides the ball past the square leg boundary. The umpire doesn’t signal a four, Yadav clarifies. “Since that is a short boundary, you only get a couple for that”, he says. He believes Ahlawat’s record innings will boost the reputation of the tournament which will help attract bigger teams. “Right now we can’t afford to invite registered clubs in Delhi because they will want a dressing room and other facilities. This is a local tournament but after Ahlawat’s triple hundred we hope to attract more sponsors from next year”, he says.

Ahmed Ali, who has played on this ground for a local club, says the relatively smaller dimensions make it a batsman’s paradise. “You are never out of the match on this ground because even an average batsman can hit a century as it is easy to hit boundaries.  Ahlawat’s team scored 416, their opponents replying with 216 in just 15 overs”, Ali says.

Even as another boundary-fest is in progress, the live commentator, had an important announcement to make. “Aapke ghar pe mehmaan aaye hai Girish ji”, he says as the spectator who is wanted at home raises his hand and rushes out of the ground. One look at the bowler on this batting paradise, you feel they’d want a similar announcement asking them to leave and go home.

Batsman reportedly scores 300 in local Delhi T20 match.

PTG Editor.

Media reports.

Wednesday, 8 February 2017.

PTG 2042-10348.

A player in India has picked the perfect time to blast the innings of his life, posting a reported triple ton in a Twenty20 match just days out from the Indian Premier League's (IPL)  2017 player auction.  Mohit Ahlawat, a 21-year-old playing for Maavi in a local T20 fixture in Delhi, notched a mammoth unbeaten score of 300 from just 72 deliveries.  His innings included 39 sixes and 14 fours and saw him score 34 runs from the final over for he finished his time at the crease with five consecutive sixes and a four.

Ahlawat said after the match: “The attack was good but after seeing off the new ball, I decided to just bat aggressively and was really timing the ball well.  I saw the scoreboard, and I was nearing my 200 with five overs to go, so I decided to go for the kill.  I reached 250 with just two overs to go, I told my partner, ‘let me try if I can make 300’, and I got 16 and 34 off the last two overs”. Ahlawat’s side posted a total of 2/416 in their 20 overs. 

Reports suggest the innings is a world record, bettering the 277 from 72 balls scored by Sri Lanka’s Dhanuka Pathirana in a local match in Lancashire in 2007. West Indian Chris Gayle holds the professional record having scored 175 in an IPL fixture.

The son of a truck driver, Ahlawat’s first stint at first-class level was not altogether impressive as he made scores of one, four, duck, duck and duck for Delhi in three matches in October 2015.  But the wicketkeeper-batsman believes he’s ready for another opportunity and hopes his record score could lead to riches in next fortnight’s IPL auction.  “Yes, I have put my name in for the IPL auction but I am not sure if this knock will help make people notice me, however, I am eager to prove my worth”.

Batsman reportedly scores 300 in local Delhi T20 match.

PTG Editor.

Media reports.

Wednesday, 8 February 2017.

PTG 2042-10348.