KL Rahul grabbed the opening slot in the first T20I against West Indies on Friday and laid the foundation of India’s astounding victory in Hyderabad. He brought up his 7th fifty and meanwhile also reached the much-awaited milestone – 1000 runs in the shortest format.

With this achievement, the Karnataka batter became the joint third-fastest to reach the milestone. He also became the seventh Indian to reach this feat. The 27-year-old reached his 1,000 runs in 29 innings.

Babar Azam is leading the table, who achieved the milestone in 26 innings, followed by Virat Kohli in 27 innings. Rahul sits in the third position with Aaron Finch, who completed his 1,000 runs in 29 innings.

Rahul’s innings with skipper Virat Kohli took India closer to victory as the duo produced a 100-run stand for the second wicket. The Indian skipper may have struggled to connect the ball initially but after the first 10 overs, however, Kohli started connecting and seemed to have reverted to his older, flamboyant self and it was more than just his bat that was doing the talking.

In the 19th over, bowled by Williams, Kohli hogged the strike and hit two sixes, the second of which was the one that took India over the line.

India now lead the three-match series 1-0. The second match will be played in Thiruvananthapuram on December 8.