Cricket News
Three fastest batters to hit 50 sixes in Test cricket
Test Cricket has seen a shift in approach by the players in recent times.
Test Cricket has seen a shift in approach by the players in recent times. With the England team adopting the “Bazball” approach under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, players believe that counter-attacking game is the way forward. This philosophy is not the easiest to master as there are a lot of risks involved. However, with higher risks at stake, the rewards are even better. Keeping this philosophy in mind, let’s have a look at the fastest batters to hit 50 sixes in Test cricket.
#3 Rishabh Pant- 54 innings
Rishabh Pant (Source: Twitter)
2018 saw Rishabh Pant‘s Test debut against England. He has been one of India’s top batters in Test cricket since his debut. The wicketkeeper-batter has 2,169 runs at an average of 43 and a strike rate of 73 in 32 Test matches.
In his 54th innings, he hit a slog-sweep against Mehidy Hasan Miraz in the Test match against Bangladesh, bringing his career total of sixes to 50. He began his Test career poetically with a six off Adil Rashid. Given that he has played more than 20 Test matches outside of Asia, this is a remarkable record.
#2 Rohit Sharma- 51 innings
Rohit Sharma (Source: Twitter)
Rohit Sharma, the captain of India, played his first Test against the West Indies in 2013. He scored centuries in each of his first two innings, which was a perfect start to his career. In just 51 innings, he hit 50 sixes in the format.
He hit a world-record 13 sixes in a Test match in his debut as the opener against South Africa in 2019. The margin of error against a batsman like him is very small when he is playing well, as he demonstrated against South Africa. On his day, he can make the bowlers pay.
#1 Shahid Afridi- 46 innings
Shahid Afridi (Source: Twitter)
Shahid Afridi, a former Pakistani captain, is still the player to reach 50 sixes in the longest format the quickest. He needed 46 innings to reach the landmark. The powerful former Pakistani captain concluded his Test career with 52 sixes in 27 Tests. Averaging 36.51 runs per game, he amassed 1,716 runs. His strike rate of 87 was extraordinary for the format.
Although he was less successful in Test cricket than in white-ball cricket, he still had a few memorable batsmanship moments. Afridi once hit seven sixes in a single Test inning. In that innings, which he played in Lahore in 2006 against India’s arch-rivals, he scored 103* off just 80 deliveries.
