India batter Tilak Varma continued his impressive rise in T20I cricket as he moved past former captain MS Dhoni in the list of India’s highest run-scorers in the format during the second T20I against Zimbabwe.
Tilak played a crucial role in India’s dominant 90-run victory at the Harare sports club on Saturday, scoring an unbeaten 60 off just 29 balls. His explosive knock came at a strike rate of 206.90 and included five fours and three sixes, helping India post 219/5 in their 20 overs.
The 23-year-old now has 1,634 runs in 58 T20I matches and 55 innings, taking him past Dhoni’s tally of 1,617 runs in 98 matches and 85 innings. Tilak’s latest milestone underlines the remarkable pace at which he has climbed the Indian T20I batting charts.
Tilak Varma overtakes MS Dhoni
Unlike Dhoni, who predominantly batted in the lower order during his international career, Tilak has spent much of his time in the top four. The left-hander has now scored two centuries and nine fifties in T20Is, while Dhoni finished his T20I career with two half-centuries.
Tilak’s 1,634 runs have come at an average of 44.16 and a strike rate of 145.37, with his highest score being an unbeaten 120. He has also struck 83 sixes and 126 fours in the format.
The latest knock also saw Tilak move ahead of former India batter Suresh Raina and teammate Ishan Kishan in the run-scoring charts, according to the figures provided. He is now seventh among India’s highest run-scorers in T20Is.
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli remain at the top
Rohit Sharma continues to lead the list of India’s highest run-scorers in T20Is with 4,231 runs, followed by Virat Kohli with 4,188. Suryakumar Yadav occupies the third spot with 3,272 runs.
Tilak has also enjoyed a productive 2026, scoring 451 runs in 18 T20I innings at an average of 34.69 and a strike rate of nearly 149. His unbeaten 60 against Zimbabwe is his highest T20I score of the year so far.
Tilak, Kishan power India to series win
Tilak’s knock came after Ishan Kishan set the platform with a blistering 81 off 44 balls. Kishan and Tilak added 94 runs together as India recovered from the early dismissals of Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Captain Shreyas Iyer also contributed 25 off 20 balls before Kishan and Tilak accelerated in the latter stages. India eventually finished with 219/5.
Zimbabwe were then bowled out for 129 in 17.5 overs, with Abhishek Sharma claiming 3/17 and Yash Thakur and Prince Yadav taking two wickets each. India’s 90-run win gave them an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, with the third T20I scheduled for Sunday, July 26, at the Harare Sports Club.
