5 batsmen with the most sixes in T20I cricket
It rained sixes in the high-scoring 2nd T20I between New Zealand and Australia yesterday at Dunedin, with the hosts holding their nerves to pip the Aussies by 4 runs. The thriller saw a total of 31 hits being launched over the fence, the joint-second-most in a T20I.
The match also saw another record being surpassed, that of the most sixes hit by a batsman in T20I cricket. However, it is still an open race, with most of the top players in this category still actively playing international cricket.
The next couple of years will see plenty of T20I action, and a few cricketers are in line to reach the top of the six-hitting tree. On that note, we look at the top 5 batsmen currently leading the charts in this category.
5 batsmen with the most sixes in T20I cricket
5) Chris Gayle (105 sixes in 58 T20I matches)
The most expected name in any list that involves six-hitting, Chris Gayle is arguably the greatest T20 batsman ever and surpasses his peers in terms of sheer numbers.
The Universe Boss is the first player to score 10,000 T20 runs and also the only batsman to hit a mind-boggling 1000 sixes in the game's shortest format. 105 of those nonchalant big hits off his bat have come in the international circuit.
After a gap of two years, the 41-year-old Jamaican is expected to return to West Indies' T20I squad to face the visiting Sri Lankan side in March. With the visitors not possessing the greatest of bowling attacks, Gayle can end up causing plenty of damage in the 3-match series.
4) Colin Munro (107 sixes in 65 T20I matches)
Currently out of the national team due to the emergence of players like Devon Conway and Glenn Philips, New Zealand's swashbuckling left-hander is 4th in the list of batsmen with most T20I sixes.
The 33-year-old scored 411 runs for the Perth Scorchers in the latest BBL season and will be hoping for an international return with the T20 World Cup not too far away.
3) Eoin Morgan (113 sixes in 97 T20I matches)
England captain Eoin Morgan is one of the cleanest strikers of the ball and can be a difficult batsman to stop when he gets going. The 34-year-old has been in form in T20Is and possesses an average of 35 in 27 matches with a strike-rate of 162.87 since January 2018.
With the 5-match T20I series in India coming up next month, the stylish left-hander will be looking to add a few more sixes in his tally of 113 and jump up higher on the list.
2) Rohit Sharma (127 sixes in 108 T20I matches)
Arguably India's best batsman in the shortest format, Rohit Sharma is among the world's most feared. Before today's T20I match between New Zealand and Australia, 'The Hitman' featured on the top of this list but has now fallen 5 sixes behind.
With the T20I series versus England almost upon us, the Indian fans would be backing the 33-year-old to play some breathtaking knocks and snatch the record back for himself.
1) Martin Guptill (132 sixes in 96 T20I matches)
The star of the second T20I for New Zealand (along with James Neesham), Martin Guptill's match-winning 97 runs helped him overtake Rohit Sharma to grab the top spot in the list of top T20I six-hitters.
Having endured a dry spell for quite some time now, the Kiwi opener hit himself back to form, brutalising the Aussie bowlers with 8 hits over the fence in his 50-ball innings.
The 34-year-old will hope to build on this innings in the upcoming matches and distance himself from the chasing pack. If Guptill gets on a roll in the next 3 matches, Rohit and the others behind him might find it tough to get past the Kiwi.