Hong Kong’s Ayush Shukla becomes third player to achieve this feat in T20I cricket

A historic achievement unfolded at Bayuemas Oval in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, as Hong Kong's Ayush Shukla became the first Asian and only the third bowler ever to bowl four maiden overs in a T20I innings.

Shukla achieved this remarkable feat during Hong Kong’s match against Mongolia, where he bowled an unbroken four-over spell without conceding a single run. 

Prior to this, only Canada’s Saad Bin Zafar and New Zealand’s Lockie Ferguson had accomplished this rare achievement. Zafar achieved this against Panama in 2021, while Ferguson did so earlier this year in the T20 World Cup against Papua New Guinea with figures of 4-4-0-3.

In his spell against Mongolia, Shukla's performance was nothing short of exceptional. He began his spell with a wicket maiden, dismissing Mongolia's Bat-yalalt Namsrai, and continued with 18 consecutive dot balls to finish with figures of 4-4-0-1. 

The 21-year-old Shukla, who has previously played 34 T20Is and taken 29 wickets at an economy rate of 8.62, had already demonstrated his potential with a notable spell of 3-1-3-1 against Cambodia in 2023. 

He gained further recognition in the 2022 Asia Cup when he famously dismissed India’s captain Rohit Sharma.