KUALA LUMPUR: Mas Elysa Yasmin Zulkifli set three world records in Twenty20 cricket after claiming six wickets for three runs in Malaysia's six-wicket win over China at the Thailand Women's T20 Smash tournament in Bangkok on Wednesday.
The 17-year-old Mas Elysa's achievement eclipsed the previous overall best bowling figures in any T20 match, in all T20 International matches as well as setting a new women's T20 international record.
Mas Elysa's figures broke the record of Sri Lankan bowler Ajantha Mendis, who took six wickets for eight runs against Zimbabwe in a men's T20 International in 2012.
The Malaysian bowler's haul is also the best in a women's T20 International (WT20I), improving on the figures of six for eight set by Botswana's Botsogo Mpedi against Lesotho in August last year.
Best of all, Mas Elysa laid claim to the world record in any T20 match from fellow Malaysia-born bowler Arul Suppiah, whose six wickets for five runs for English county Somerset against Glamorgan has stood since 2011.
Mas Elysa's display helped Malaysia finish third in Group A with the win over China, the national team's second in the tournament, to qualify for the fifth to eighth playoff matches on Friday.
Mas Elysa, who had not claimed a wicket in her previous seven WT20I matches, began her trek to history by bowling opener Zhang Chan for 11 before returning to dismiss Li Haoyue for one.
She then had Lyu Ping and Zhang Huiyue removed with consecutive deliveries before repeating the feat with the scalps of Wang Luowanyu and Zhang Xiangxue through the last two balls of Mas Elysa's fourth and final over.
China, ranked 25th in women's T20 cricket, were dismissed for 39 in 18.4 overs before World No 31 Malaysia reached 40-4 in 12.3 overs to claim victory. Yusrina Yaakop topscored for Malaysia with 10 runs.
In earlier matches, Malaysia rebounded from an opening six-wicket defeat to Nepal on Sunday with a 34-run win over Thailand A before going down by 77 runs to the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday.
The records, however, are subject to confirmation by the International Cricket Council.