Highest Score in T20 International Cricket: Team & Individual Records
- Written by: UK Sports
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When it comes to the Highest Score in T20 International cricket, T20 International cricket has its own separate record book from franchise leagues, and both marks have moved in the last few years. Zimbabwe holds the highest team total ever posted in a T20I, and Aaron Finch holds the highest individual score, a mark that has now stood for several years despite repeated attempts to beat it.
Highest Team Score in a T20 International
Zimbabwe hold the record for the highest team total in T20 International history with 344 for 4 against Gambia on 24 October 2024, at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier in Nairobi. Captain Sikandar Raza led the innings with 133 off 43 balls as Zimbabwe took full advantage of a bowling attack well below international standard.
That total broke the previous record of 314 for 3, set by Nepal against Mongolia at the 2023 Asian Games, which had itself stood as the first score past 300 in T20I history. Both of the two biggest totals in the format’s history were set against associate nations, a pattern that runs through almost the entire list of the highest T20I scores.
Zimbabwe’s 344 has now held for more than two seasons, which is notable given how often T20I totals have been rewritten since 2023. Sikandar Raza’s 133 off 43 balls set the tone early, and the rest of the order kept the scoring rate above 17 an over for most of the innings, a pace that is difficult to sustain even against weaker bowling.
Top Team Totals in T20 Internationals
| Rank | Score | Team | Opponent | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 344/4 | Zimbabwe | Gambia | 2024 |
| 2 | 314/3 | Nepal | Mongolia | 2023 |
| 3 | 304/2 | England | South Africa | 2025 |
| 4 | 297/6 | India | Bangladesh | 2024 |
| 5 | 286/5 | Zimbabwe | Seychelles | 2024 |
At official ICC T20 World Cup tournaments specifically, where the opposition is more evenly matched, totals run lower. Sri Lanka’s 260 for 6 against Kenya in 2007 remains the highest team score recorded at a T20 World Cup, a total that has stood since the tournament’s first edition even as scoring rates elsewhere in the format have climbed sharply.
Highest Individual Score in a T20 International
Aaron Finch holds the record for the highest individual score in a T20 International with 172 off 76 balls for Australia against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2018, an innings built on 16 fours and 10 sixes. It is his second entry in T20I history’s highest individual scores, since he also held the previous record of 156 against England in 2013 before beating his own mark five years later.
The closest anyone has come since is Hazratullah Zazai, who made an unbeaten 162 off 62 balls for Afghanistan against Ireland in Dehradun in 2019, hitting 11 fours and 16 sixes. No batter has passed 165 in a T20I since Finch’s innings, making it one of the more durable individual records in the format, and one of the few major T20I records not set against a lower-ranked or newly promoted side.
Why T20I Totals Keep Climbing
Nearly every record total on this list came against an associate nation still building its bowling depth, which is why Zimbabwe, Nepal and England’s biggest scores were all set against Gambia, Mongolia and South Africa’s weaker attacks respectively rather than in matches between two settled top-tier sides.
Full ICC members playing each other in bilateral series or at the T20 World Cup produce much tighter totals, which is why the World Cup record of 260 has lasted nearly two decades even as the outright T20I record has climbed past 340.
As more associate nations gain full T20I status and schedule fixtures against stronger opposition, the gap between these mismatched totals and competitive T20I scores is likely to narrow over time.
FAQs: Highest Score in T20 International Cricket
What is the highest team score in a T20 International?
Zimbabwe’s 344 for 4 against Gambia on 24 October 2024 is the highest team total in T20 International history.
What is the highest team score at a T20 World Cup?
Sri Lanka’s 260 for 6 against Kenya in 2007 is the highest team total recorded at an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
Who has the highest individual score in a T20 International?
Aaron Finch holds the record with 172 off 76 balls for Australia against Zimbabwe in 2018.
Who has the second-highest individual score in a T20 International?
Hazratullah Zazai holds this mark with an unbeaten 162 for Afghanistan against Ireland in 2019.