Sunil Gavaskar, legendary Indian opener, has called for the separation of records in T20Is for Full Member nations and associate teams, citing the glaring difference in standards of cricket.

The highest team total in T20Is is Zimbabwe’s 344/4 against Gambia, and they also hold the record for the biggest margin of victory by runs, having secured a whopping 290-run win in the same match. Meanwhile, the lowest team total in T20Is is 7 all out in 7.3 overs, by Ivory Coast.

The record for the most consecutive wins in men’s T20Is belongs to Spain, which won 24 matches between February 2023 and August 2026. The best bowling figures in T20Is are 8/7, held by Sonam Yeshey of Bhutan.

Naturally, these are international records achieved by Associate teams, which the ICC has not granted full-member status and which can compete in only one or two formats at the international level.

Sunil Gavaskar has raised doubts about how records are kept in men's T20Is, contending that performances from matches between teams at very different levels should not automatically be judged on equal terms.

Gavaskar made it clear that he has no objection to matches between Associate teams being labelled 'internationals'. What worries him instead is whether some "sort of minimum standard" should exist before statistics from these unevenly matched games are counted for official records purposes.

His concerns come amid Mongolia being bowled out for 13 a few days ago. As it happens, that total isn’t even the lowest innings total in men’s T20I history.

“In the football leagues there are divisions where there’s promotion and relegation at the end of a season. So whatever records are set, they are mentioned as being in the Divisions, in which they have been achieved.

Maybe something similar should be thought of where, depending on the division in which countries are playing, the differentiation is clear to everybody. So even while full member countries and those Associate member countries, who qualify for the ICC World Cup, can be called internationals when they play against each other, maybe for the others it can be called Division A international or Division B international," Gavaskar wrote in Mid-Day.

Gavaskar is of the view that treating records made in these matches as equal to those set in games featuring full-member teams is ‘unfair’.

“When a team is dismissed for such paltry scores, the bowler’s stats can only be bettered when the emerging ICC Associate member countries play against each other. To equate it with the stats when full member country teams play against each other is simply not fair.

The glaring difference in standards means that records will belong to players who most of the cricketing world has never heard of before and are perhaps likely to never hear of again," he added.

This debate also highlights the record for the quickest fifty in men’s T20Is. Before Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee claimed the record, it was held by India legend Yuvraj Singh. While Yuvraj reached the milestone in 12 deliveries against England, Dipendra surpassed that mark against a lowly Mongolia, requiring just 9 deliveries.

Gavaskar argues that for a team of Nepal’s quality, matches against other Associate teams can be a cakewalk.

“Make no mistake, Nepal is making rapid strides, as we saw in the T20 World Cup in India earlier in the year when they almost beat England. So, it’s no surprise when its batters and bowlers pulverize the other Associate country teams. But should that count for a record?"he wrote.

(Mid-day inputs)