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India batter Ishan Kishan on Sunday became the seventh Indian to complete 2,000 runs in T20 Internationals while also breaking Suryakumar Yadav's record for most runs by an Indian in a calendar year in the shortest format during the fifth and final match against New Zealand at Seddon Park.
Kishan achieved the milestone with an aggressive 61 off 32 balls, which included five sixes and as many fours. He now has 2,016 runs from 69 T20Is, with 206 fours and 96 sixes. The left-hander has been in outstanding form this year, scoring 1,220 runs in 37 matches and innings at an average of 35.88 and a strike rate of 171.58. His tally includes a century and eight half-centuries, taking him past Suryakumar's previous record of 1,164 runs in 2022. Kishan's innings came at a crucial stage after India lost Abhishek Sharma to Adam Milne in the second over. Coming in at number three, Kishan provided the hosts with an attacking start and built a 93-run partnership for the third wicket with skipper Shreyas Iyer. Iyer also played an aggressive knock, scoring 50 off just 23 balls, with four sixes and three fours. Naman Dhir contributed 33 off 23 deliveries, while Nitish Kumar Reddy made 22 off 17 balls as India posted 191 runs. Kishan had entered the contest after scoring a duck in the previous T20I but responded with a half-century to strengthen India's batting effort. The 2026 campaign has been particularly productive for Kishan, who also played a key role in India's title-winning campaign at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, scoring 317 runs in the tournament. Rohit Sharma leads India's T20I run charts with 4,231 runs, followed by Virat Kohli with 4,188. Suryakumar is third with 3,272, and remains the leading run-scorer among India's active T20I batters. Hardik Pandya (2,288), Abhishek Sharma (2,268) and KL Rahul (2,265) occupy the next three positions ahead of Kishan. For New Zealand, Milne was the leading wicket-taker with four scalps, while Nathan Smith and Blair Tickner claimed two wickets each. India have an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match T20I series against BlackCaps and the visitors are looking to finish the series with another win in Hamilton. (ANI)
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