India, April 11 -- Abhishek Sharma did not just give Sunrisers Hyderabad a blistering start against Punjab Kings in New Chandigarh. He turned another explosive innings into a record that now belongs to him alone.

Opening the batting at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Abhishek raced to his half-century in just 18 balls, getting there with a six off Vijaykumar Vyshak in the fifth over. That made him the first player in IPL history to score five fifties in less than 20 balls.

That is the real story here. Not just the speed of this knock, but the fact that he has done it so often that he now sits clear of the field in one of the league's most extreme batting categories. After Saturday's innings, Abhishek moved a...