5 players with most sixes in International Cricket in a calendar year across formats
Cricket today has become a batsman's game. Over the years, the game has tilted heavily towards the batsmen with the advent of smaller cricket grounds and bigger bats. With the advent of T20s, bowlers are left with no place to hide with the batsmen going after them from ball 1.
Six hitting has also become absolutely effortless today with batsmen not afraid to take risks and hit the ball in the air. While some players rely on brute force and power, others are more reliant on timing. So, who are those players who have hit the maximum number of sixes in international cricket in a calendar year across formats? Let us have a look.
#5 Shahid Afridi (2005)
Shahid Afridi was the first true clean hitter of the modern era. Popularly known among his fans as ' Boom Boom Afridi', he was one of the most enigmatic players in the history of cricket. He announced his arrival into the world stage when he smashed the then-fastest century in ODIs of just 37 balls against Sri Lanka in 1996. That particular record stood for 18 years before it was broken by Corey Anderson in 2014.
He will forever be associated with his madcap batting which remains a crowd-puller even today.
In terms of six hitting he had his best year in 2005 when he smashed a record 56 sixes in the calendar year to occupy the number 5 position on the list. Afridi also holds the record of the most international sixes in the history of cricket with him hitting 476 sixes over the course of his 20-year career.