Fatima Sana made history during the third T20I match against Zimbabwe women on May 17 at the National Stadium in Karachi. The Pakistan captain scored the fastest half-century in women’s T20I history, finishing with an impressive 62 runs off just 19 balls.
The 24-year-old broke the previous record for the fastest fifty, which was achieved in 18 balls by Sophie Devine, Phoebe Litchfield, and Richa Ghosh. Sana’s performance also matched the record for the fastest fifty in all women’s T20 Cricket, previously set by Marie Kelly for Warwickshire in 2022 and Laura Harris for Otago in the 2025 Super Smash.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Pakistan stood at 152/4 in the 17th over when Sana entered the game. She quickly made an impact, hitting a boundary on her first ball against Michelle Mavunga. Sana then aggressively targeted the Zimbabwe bowlers, including four consecutive boundaries against Kudzai Chigora.
Sana escalated her scoring in the 19th over against Nomvelo Sibanda, hitting a series of 4, 4, 6, 6, and 4 for a total of 24 runs in that over, reaching 48 runs off just 14 balls. Meanwhile, Saira Jabeen also scored a solid half-century, finishing unbeaten on 50 off 32 balls.
Pakistan’s bowling performance was also strong, leading to Zimbabwe’s total of just 90 runs. Sadia Iqbal and Nashra Sandhu excelled with the ball, taking five wickets between them, while Sana contributed with bowling figures of 1/28 in 2.1 overs to cap off her remarkable all-round display.