Pat Cummins equals IPL record after reaching 50 in 14 balls for Kolkata

Pat Cummins has amazed everyone — not least himself — with one of the great whirlwind Indian Premier League knocks.

The Australia captain has been retained by Kolkata Knight Riders as their star overseas paceman — but in Pune on Wednesday, he morphed into a demon hitter who equalled the record for the fastest fifty ever seen in the IPL.

With a match-winning innings of astonishing clean hitting, Cummins, incredibly, smacked 34 off his own bat off just one seven-ball over from his compatriot Daniel Sams to win the match with four overs to spare.

«I think I'm probably the most surprised bloke here,» he said as he collected the man of the match prize and all the other IPL gongs — super striker of the match, game-changer of the match, 'Let's crack it' sixes award and most valuable asset of the match.

In all, Cummins, playing his first match for KKR this season, smashed an unbeaten 56 off just 15 balls, with six sixes and four fours — at a strike rate of 373.33 — to power the Knight Riders to a five-wicket victory over shell-shocked Mumbai Indians.

He reached his 50 in just 14 balls, equalling the record for fastest 50 in the IPL by Lokesh Rahul in 2018, and then cracked the next ball back over Sams' head for six to win the match.

Sams was clobbered by Cummins for 6, 4, 6, 6, 2 (no-ball), 4, 6 in that last over, which went for 35 runs in total.

Off the fifth ball, Cummins did get caught at long-off off Sams' waist-high beamer but he got a reprieve when it was ruled a high no-ball, which cost Mumbai three runs.

The Knight Riders had needed 35 from 30 balls and Cummins got them all in just that one over, with his final blow allowing them to breeze to their victory target on 5-162.

His heroics came after he also did what he's largely paid