10 of the biggest sixes of all time

Tendulkar’s monstrous strike in 2003 WCImprovements in fitness and equipment means we are now seeing bigger sixes than ever before. While in the past it was enough to simply clear the rope, for today’s titans it’s all about - to paraphrase Danny Morrison - sending the ball into orbit.Limited-overs cricket has helped too. The sedate longer game demanded excellent defence, but the brash new world pines for ferocious hitting left, right and centre.Here are 10 shots which were not just pummelled over the boundary, but out of the stadium as well. Forget six runs, these huge hits should have been awarded 12.

#1 Yuvraj Singh vs England

It’s a moment no Indian cricket fan will ever forget. When Yuvraj Singh crushed a sixth consecutive Stuart Broad delivery beyond the boundary ropes in the 2007 World Twenty20, the cricketing world stood still and marvelled in the exhibition of effortless force.

A riled up Yuvraj showed no mercy on the young, inexperienced England bowler, swatting him for maximums all around the ground. The first one - a sweet blow into the leg side - was the best, however, and the only doubt was whether it would clear the ground. It did and was last seen on a one-way ticket to a highway somewhere in Durban.

Yuvraj’s feat ensured he became just the second player to ever hit six sixes in an over in international cricket - Herschelle Gibbs managed it earlier that year against the Netherlands in the 50-over World Cup.