Pakistan opening batter Sahibzada Farhan continued with his remarkable form in the T20 World Cup 2026, and on Saturday, he broke Virat Kohli‘s record for scoring the most runs in a single edition of the tournament. The right-hander achieved the feat in the Group 2 Super 8s do-or-die clash against Sri Lanka at the Pallekele International Stadium. Before the contest against the Island Nation, Farhan needed 37 more runs to break Kohli’s record, which stood the test of time for 12 years.
The 29-year-old achieved the feat in the 6th over of the innings, off Dasun Shanaka’s bowling. However, he came close to breaking the record in the fifth over itself off the bowling of Dushmantha Chameera. He began the over with a six and a four, putting the pressure firmly back on the right-arm pacer. He then took a single on the third delivery and was brought on strike on the fourth delivery. The batter, who has been in remarkable touch in the entire 2026 edition of the tournament, reached on level terms with Kohli on the final ball by taking a single off Chameera.
Farhan then made the record his own by smacking a four on the first ball of the sixth over, bowled by Sri Lanka captain Shanaka. Eventually, the batter registered his second ton of the tournament, playing a knock of 100 runs, helping Pakistan post 212/8 in the allotted twenty overs.
Earlier, Kohli held the record for most runs in a single edition of the T20 World Cup after he scored 319 runs in 2014. His performance helped the team reach the final, where India fell short against Sri Lanka. For this haul of runs, Kohli was also adjudged as Player of the Tournament, a feat he achieved in the next edition of the tournament in 2016 as well.
Speaking of Farhan, the right-hander has been in sensational touch in the entire tournament. He scored a century against Namibia, and then backed this performance up with a half-century in the Super 8s tie against England. His only failure came against India, where he was dismissed for a duck by Hardik Pandya.
Pakistan ring in changes for the must-win tie against Sri Lanka
In the match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the latter won the toss and opted to bowl first. The equation is simple for Salman Ali Agha’s team; they need to win by at least 65 runs to qualify for the semi-finals and knock New Zealand out.
For the match against Sri Lanka, Pakistan made three changes, leaving out Babar Azam, Saim Ayub and Salman Mirza, bringing in Naseem Shah, Khawaja Nafay, and Abrar Ahmed.
Sri Lanka are already out of the T20 World Cup after losing their opening two Super 8s matches against England and New Zealand.
