Most Sixes in Cricket History Across all Formats: The Biggest Hitters
Traditionally, cricket in the test format was regarded as a battle of skill and technique between batters and bowlers. But now, with the advent of the shorter formats like the ODI and T20s, and the aspect of power hitting in cricket has added an electrifying dimension to the game. Six hitting is now one of the most exciting parts of the sport. The ability to hit maximums consistently has become a defining factor in the modern era of the game. And as an entertainment point of view, seeing players hit big is what every spectator loves. The art of hitting big shows how dominant you can be with your cricket bat on the pitch. In this article of ZAP Records, let’s look at a list of players with the most international sixes in all formats.
Most sixes in test cricket:
Credit: Wisden
Tests, one of the oldest formats, is a very slow paced game, and we don’t usually see batsmen going big. But players like Brendon McCullum and Chris Gayle changed how they approached the game and went aggressive. Gayle even holds the record for hitting a six off the very first ball of a test match. Ben Stokes, who’s been the best allrounder for England for so many years, and now the England Test Team captain is at the top of the list with 109. Here is a list of top 10 players with the most sixes in test history.
Rank |
Player |
Team |
Matches |
Test 6s |
Average 6s / Match |
1 |
Ben Stokes |
England |
91 |
109 |
1.1978 |
2 |
Brendon McCullum |
New Zealand |
101 |
107 |
1.0594 |
3 |
Adam Gilchrist |
Australia |
96 |
100 |
1.0417 |
4 |
Chris Gayle |
West Indies |
103 |
98 |
0.9515 |
5 |
Jacques Kallis |
South Africa |
166 |
97 |
0.5843 |
6 |
Virender Sehwag |
India |
104 |
91 |
0.8750 |
7 |
Brian Lara |
West Indies |
131 |
88 |
0.6718 |
8 |
Chris Cairns |
New Zealand |
62 |
87 |
1.4032 |
9 |
Vivian Richards |
West Indies |
121 |
84 |
0.6942 |
10 |
Tim Southee |
New Zealand |
94 |
83 |
0.8829 |
Most sixes in ODI cricket:
Credit: Crictracker
ODIs are exciting, an equal blend of patience and aggression, where both skills are equally required. This format has seen some huge innings by great batsmen. We have even seen players like Rohit Sharma hit 16 maximums in a single ODI innings, but the record for the most sixes in a single ODI innings stays with Eoin Morgan, where he smashed Afghanistan for 17 in an ICC ODI World Cup match in 2019. Shahid Afridi remains at the top of the list of top 10 batsmen with most sixes in One day internationals with 351.
Rank |
Player |
Matches |
ODI 6s |
Average 6s / Match |
1 |
Shahid Afridi |
398 |
351 |
0.8819 |
2 |
Chris Gayle |
301 |
331 |
1.0997 |
3 |
Rohit Sharma |
243 |
275 |
1.1317 |
4 |
Sanath Jayasuriya |
445 |
270 |
0.6067 |
5 |
MS Dhoni |
350 |
229 |
0.6543 |
6 |
Eoin Morgan |
248 |
220 |
0.8871 |
7 |
AB de Villiers |
228 |
204 |
0.8947 |
8 |
Brendon McCullum |
260 |
200 |
0.7692 |
9 |
Sachin Tendulkar |
463 |
195 |
0.4206 |
10 |
Saurav Ganguly |
311 |
190 |
0.6103 |
Most sixes in t20 international cricket:
Credit: ICC
T20 is all about sixes. The ability to deposit the leather ball into the stands is now a bare minimum for batsmen in the shortest format of the game. This is what makes this version of the game so entertaining for fans. It is not even surprising if you see a team hit 20-25 maximum in a single T20I game. Rohit Sharma, the man with the most centuries in T20 cricket, retains top spot in this list as well, having hit 182 maximums in just 148 matches. Here’s a list of players with the most sixes in T20Is.
Rank |
Player |
Matches |
T20 6s |
Average 6s / Match |
1 |
Rohit Sharma |
148 |
182 |
1.2297 |
2 |
Martin Guptill |
122 |
173 |
1.4180 |
3 |
Aaron Finch |
103 |
125 |
1.2136 |
4 |
Chris Gayle |
79 |
124 |
1.5696 |
5 |
Eoin Morgan |
115 |
120 |
1.0435 |
6 |
Virat Kohli |
115 |
117 |
1.0174 |
7 |
Paul Stirling |
121 |
117 |
0.9669 |
8 |
Jos Buttler |
104 |
113 |
1.0865 |
9 |
Evin Lewis |
53 |
111 |
2.0943 |
10 |
Colin Munro |
65 |
107 |
1.6462 |
Most sixes in international cricket in all Formats:
Credit: ABP News
Hitting maximums and getting those half dozen runs for your team has now become an invaluable skill for all players to have. Even in the Test format, you see players like Rishabh Pant come in and hit bowlers out of the park, suddenly giving a momentum shift. The ability to hit sixes consistently has become a defining factor in the modern era of cricket. Chris Gayle sits at the top of the list, with most sixes in international cricket history. His tally of 553 is truly remarkable, but India’s very own, Ro-HITMAN Sharma is super close to clinching the top spot.
Here's a list of players with the highest number of sixes in international cricket in all formats:
Rank |
Player |
Total Sixes |
Total Matches |
Test 6s |
ODI 6s |
T20I 6s |
1 |
Chris Gayle |
553 |
483 |
98 |
331 |
124 |
2 |
Rohit Sharma |
534 |
443 |
77 |
275 |
182 |
3 |
Shahid Afridi |
476 |
524 |
52 |
351 |
73 |
4 |
Brendon McCullum |
398 |
432 |
107 |
200 |
91 |
5 |
Martin Guptill |
383 |
367 |
23 |
187 |
173 |
6 |
MS Dhoni |
359 |
538 |
78 |
229 |
52 |
7 |
Sanath Jayasuriya |
352 |
586 |
59 |
270 |
23 |
8 |
Eoin Morgan |
346 |
379 |
6 |
220 |
120 |
9 |
AB de Villiers |
328 |
420 |
64 |
204 |
60 |
10 |
Jos Buttler |
304 |
326 |
33 |
158 |
113 |
Most Sixes in the IPL:
Credit: 100 MB
Sixhitting is the most exciting part of the Indian Premier League. There can be matches when teams even fail to score 5 runs of the last over or some other matches when Rinku Singh can hit 5 sixes off the last 5 balls to win his team the match. But in terms of the number of maximums a player has hit, no one comes close to Chris Gayle. He had an aura, and instilled a fear in the lives of bowlers. Here’s a list of players with the highest number of sixes in IPL history.
Player |
Sixes |
Matches |
Team |
Average 6s / Match |
Chris Gayle |
357 |
142 |
Punjab, Kolkata, Bangalore |
2.51 |
Rohit Sharma |
257 |
243 |
Mumbai, Deccan Chargers |
1.06 |
AB de Villiers |
251 |
184 |
Bangalore, Delhi |
1.36 |
239 |
250 |
Chennai, Pune |
0.96 |
|
234 |
237 |
Bangalore |
0.99 |
|
David Warner |
226 |
176 |
Delhi, Hyderabad |
1.28 |
Kieron Pollard |
223 |
189 |
Mumbai |
1.18 |
Suresh Raina |
203 |
205 |
Chennai, Gujarat |
0.99 |
Andre Russell |
193 |
112 |
Kolkata, Delhi |
1.72 |
Shane Watson |
190 |
145 |
Chennai, Rajasthan, Delhi, Bangalore |
1.31 |
Conclusion:
As the sport evolves and grows to become more entertaining, we will only get to see more maximums being hit in the years to come. The shortest format, the T20s have given batsmen an extra incentive to take risks and go big, which has inspired some incredible batting performances. Who will become the next batsman to break the record for most sixes in international cricket? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure: the future of the sport is going to be super entertaining.
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