The 9 big-hitters who reached 3000 T20I runs the quickest

CS Chiwanza 06 Aug 2025

Virat Kohli had a prolific T20I career for India.

Few batters have crossed the 3,000-run mark in T20I cricket. Of that short list, who has done it at a quicker rate than others?

Below, we list the batters who took the least time by innings, in descending order.

1. Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan
79 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

The easiest way to describe what happened in Rawalpindi on 20 April 2024 is this: one team got the ball to land in the right areas and the other middled everything.

Pakistan won the toss, elected to field first, and unleashed a bowling attack that delivered close to 10 overs’ worth of dot balls (59) as they bundled New Zealand out for 90 in 18.1 overs.

Rizwan, who was at first drop, padded up and walked in to bat three balls into Pakistan’s chase. The wicketkeeper immediately took control and guided Pakistan to victory in 12.1 overs with an unbeaten 34-ball 45. His score helped him cross the 3000-run threshold in T20Is.

2. Virat Kohli

India
81 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

Virat Kohli has 38 T20I half-centuries to his name. Eighteen of them came while batting first, and to solidify his reputation as the master of chasing down totals, 20 came while batting second.

In March 2021, Kohli registered his 24th T20I half-century with an unbeaten 49-ball 73 that secured victory for India against England in Ahmedabad.

The former Indian captain acted as if he knew that he was on the cusp of reaching the 3000-run mark as India raced to the finish line in 17.5 overs. Kohli launched a six off the last delivery of the chase to both secure victory for India and become the second-fastest batter to get to 3000 T20I runs.

3. Babar Azam

Pakistan
81 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

England won the toss, elected to bowl first, and took wickets around Babar Azam as they set themselves up for a dominant eight-wicket win over Pakistan when the two sides met in Lahore in September 2022.

Azam shared the crease with six batters, one of whom went past 30 runs with a meaningful 21-ball 31, while the other five struck at close to a run-a-ball.

Azam did his best to steer Pakistan to a competitive total with an unbeaten 87 from 59, but his effort was trumped by Phil Salt’s blistering, unbeaten 88 from 41 balls. While Azam’s half-century was inadequate to secure victory for Pakistan, it was enough to hand him an individual milestone. It took him over the 3000-run mark in T20Is.

Also read – The Hundred 2025: Everything you need to know and where to watch worldwide

4. Aaron Finch

Australia
98 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

Aaron Finch won the toss, chose to bowl first, and watched Jos Buttler and Alex Hales rip the Australian bowling attack to shreds. They mounted a brisk 132-run opening partnership in a mere 11.2 overs. The England openers finished the match with half-centuries, before the next five batters added a combined 48 runs from 38 balls.

Finch’s day got worse when he was run out while trying to squeeze a second run after punching the ball into the covers for a single. He was dismissed for a mere 12 runs from seven deliveries. Despite it being an insignificant score in the context of the match, it was enough to see him past the 3000-run mark.

5. Virandeep Singh

Malaysia
98 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

Singh did not score as much as Samoa’s Darius Visser, who made an unbeaten 107 from 64 balls as he shepherded his country to 188/2. The Malaysian number four batter was not even the best batter in his team; he scored the third-most runs and boasted the fourth-highest strike rate in the match.

Singh made 36 runs from 25 balls. His contribution was enough to see Malaysia over the line by six wickets and take a step forward in the Asia Pacific Cricket Champions Trophy. It also helped him go over 3000 runs in T20Is.

6. Martin Guptill

New Zealand
101 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

At one point, Martin Guptill had 14 runs from 15 balls. The New Zealand opener was forced to anchor the innings because his side kept losing wickets at the other end. Guptill picked up the tempo and engaged the third gear in the sixth over; however, it wasn’t until the 12th over that he really got going.

The New Zealand captain was on 40 from 31 when he engaged the fifth gear.

He scored 53 runs in the next 25 balls as he raced to 93 in 56 deliveries. Guptill struck six of the seven sixes he hit in the match in that period. His knock lifted New Zealand to 172/5, a score that was enough to secure victory against Scotland. His 93 was also enough to see him cross the 3000-run mark.

7. David Warner

Australia
102 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

David Warner put up a fight, and so did Tim David, when Australia faced the West Indies in Perth in February 2024.

The hosts were trying to chase the West Indies’ total of 220/6. The visitors reached the mammoth total courtesy of a 139-run sixth-wicket partnership between Andre Russell and Sherfane Rutherford.

Warner hit an outstanding 81 from 49 balls, while David chipped in with an unbeaten 41 from 19.

However, their efforts weren’t enough because the other batters had chewed up a lot of deliveries. Warner’s half-century was enough to secure him an individual milestone, as it took him past 3000 runs in T20Is.

8. Jos Buttler

England
106 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

Pakistan manhandled England’s middle order when the two sides squared off in Birmingham in May 2024. They dismissed Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, and Chris Jordan for a combined 29 runs from 30 deliveries.

However, that comeback was too little too late. Jos Buttler had opened the batting and smashed 84 runs from 51 balls to put England into a strong position.

Buttler, who was playing his record-equalling 115th T20I for England (becoming the second player after Eoin Morgan), had two things to celebrate: that milestone and passing the 3000-run mark.

9. Rohit Sharma

India
108 innings to reach 3,000 T20I runs

Namibia struggled to get a foothold in their match against India at the T20I World Cup in Dubai in 2021. Virat Kohli won the toss, asked them to bat first, and restricted the Southern African country to 132/8.

In their chase, India did not make a meal of the middling total.

Rohit Sharma shared an 86-run opening stand with KL Rahul as they set India up for a dominant nine-wicket win with 28 balls remaining. Sharma dominated the opening partnership, scoring 56 of the 86 runs.

His total came from 37 balls. The brisk half-century catapulted him beyond the 3000-run mark.

Paul Stirling is the only other batter with more than 3000 runs in T20Is. The Ireland star crossed the threshold in 113 innings.

Fastest to 3,000 T20I runs – summary list

1. Mohammad Rizwan: 79 innings
2. Virat Kohli: 81 innings
3. Babar Azam: 81 innings
4. Aaron Finch: 98 innings
5. Virandeep Singh: 98 innings
6. Martin Guptill: 101 innings
7. David Warner: 102 innings
8. Jos Buttler: 106 innings
9. Rohit Sharma: 108 innings