Ireland white-ball skipper Paul Stirling achieved a rare feat in T20Is as his side beat Afghanistan in the first game of the three-match series in Sharjah defending a middling total of 149 runs. Stirling, who is the fifth leading run-getter in men's T20Is, became the first male cricketer to score 400 fours in the format in international cricket. Stirling during his 25-run knock on Friday, March 15 smashed a couple of fours and a six to breach the 400-mark.
Overall, Stirling is the third cricketer in T20Is to achieve the landmark after Suzie Bates and Meg Lanning but first in men's T20Is with former Pakistan captain Babar Azam in second place with 395 boundaries. Former India skipper Virat Kohli follows Babar in the third place with 361 fours to his name with current captain Rohit Sharma next to him with 359 boundaries in the shortest format.
Most fours in T20Is
Paul Stirling - 401 (135 matches)
Babar Azam - 395 (109 matches)
Virat Kohli - 361 (117 matches)
Rohit Sharma - 359 (151 matches)
David Warner - 320 (103 matches)
With two games left in the series and a T20 World Cup to come in June, Stirling has an opportunity to build a massive lead ahead of Babar, who might surpass the Irish skipper with Pakistan set to play a T20I series in April and then in May ahead of the marquee tournament.
As for the match, Harry Tector's unbeaten 56 off 34 guided Ireland to a competitive score of 149 runs on that slow Sharjah wicket. However, considering the Afghanistan batting line-up and their experience at the venue, the Afghans would have fancied their chances to chase that total down. However, it wasn't to be.
Ben White with a four-wicket haul and Josh Little's three wickets didn't let Afghanistan settle and Irish bowlers kept taking wickets at regular intervals to eventually win the game by 38 runs and take a 1-0 lead.
