India, March 23 -- Not too long ago, 170 could be banked upon as a match-winning total. That number looks increasingly fragile now. Engineering this change is IPL where 200 is the new benchmark. Anything below that looks like a par score at best, a losing one at worst.

And the numbers are rising as well-nine 200-plus scores in 2021 to 18 in 2023, 41 in 2024 and 52 in 2025. This isn't just a superficial rise in totals. It is the result of a deeper structural transformation in how T20 batting is conceptualised, executed, and optimised.

Fuelling this change of course is the much-documented evolution in approach. Batters are no longer keen on building innings because they are assured of scoring depth. Jos Buttler and Virat Kohli once epitom...