Baroda set highest-ever T20 total with 349 in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Baroda rewrote T20 cricket history on 5 December, smashing a record-breaking 349/5 against Sikkim in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the Emerald High School Ground in Indore.

This extraordinary innings is now the highest-ever total in men's T20 cricket, surpassing the previous record of 344 set by Zimbabwe earlier this year.

Batting first, Baroda's lineup was relentless, dismantling Sikkim's bowlers with ease. Bhanu Pania delivered a breathtaking knock, scoring an unbeaten 134 off just 51 balls, including 15 towering sixes.

His explosive innings formed the backbone of Baroda's historic performance, with contributions from Abhimanyusingh Rajput, Shivalik Sharma, and Vishnu Solanki, who all scored rapid half-centuries at strike rates well above 300.

Baroda reached 100 runs within the powerplay, 200 by the 11th over, and surged past 300 in the 18th, before finishing just shy of the elusive 350 mark. Vaibhav Suryavanshi added late fireworks with 76 not out off 46 balls, ensuring the team's total etched its name in history.

Baroda's 349 shattered several records. It eclipsed Zimbabwe's previous world-record T20 score of 344 against Gambia in October and overtook Punjab's domestic Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy record of 275, set last year. It marked only the third time a men's T20 team has crossed the 300-run milestone, following Zimbabwe and Nepal.

The innings also broke the record for the most sixes in a single T20 innings, with Baroda's batters smashing 37 maximums—nearly one every three balls. The previous record for the highest T20 total on Indian soil, set by India's 297 against Bangladesh earlier this year, also fell by a considerable margin.

Remarkably, Baroda achieved this feat without Hardik Pandya and without Krunal Pandya taking to the crease. Their depth and firepower on display in Indore set a new standard for T20 cricket, demonstrating that totals once deemed unattainable are now within reach.