KUALA LUMPUR – National cricketer Virandeep Singh has created history as the first Malaysian to score 1,000 runs in the Twenty20 International (T20I) format.
The 23-year-old achieved the feat when helping Malaysia defeat the Maldives by 94 runs in the Malaysia T20I Quadrangular Series 2022 at the UKM Oval in Bangi, yesterday.
Virandeep, who made his T20I debut against Thailand in the 2019 Malaysia Tri-Nation Series, achieved the mark after hitting six fours and four sixers for an overall 72 runs yesterday to help Malaysia gain 230/4, while the Maldives only managed to hit 136/6 in the chasing.
With the additional 72 runs done yesterday to be named as Player of the match, Virandeep now accumulated a total of 1,034 runs in about 38 T20I matches played for Malaysia.
Speaking to Bernama on his latest achievement, Virandeep believes it could be a great start for him to work harder towards an illustrious and long cricket career.
“I feel amazing, it's always a good feeling to achieve such an accord because ever since I started to play for Malaysia, I wanted to do well for the country. It’s not that I played for the record or fame, but when these kinds of things fall in place, I feel like all the hard work is paying off.
“Now I need to ensure that I carry on this form and most importantly work harder to win more matches for Malaysia,” he said.
Last year, Virandeep carved his name as the first Malaysian to feature in Nepal’s Everest Premier League 2021, after inking a deal with the Chitwan Tigers.
The hosts, who had kept a 100 percent winning record to top the Malaysia T20I Quadrangular Series 2022 standing with 12 points, defeating the Maldives, Bhutan and Thailand (all twice), are set to play second-placed Bhutan in the finals tomorrow.
After the quadrangular series, Virandeep will be representing the country in the 50-over format 2022 Canada Cricket World Cup Challenge League A from July 27 to August 6, a qualification pathway for the 2023 World Cup in India. – Bernama, July 10, 2022
