3 players with the most international sixes in 2019

Sixes are an indispensable part of modern day cricket, whether it’s any format of the game - long, short or shorter. While the size of the bats has a key role to play in it, the evolution of the game and the upgradation of the hitting skills of the batsmen are also responsible for so many more sixes being hit these days than in the past.

Some players have a natural six hitting ability which comes either from the muscle power they possess or the gift of timing they have. These players never shy away from playing the ball in the air even if the game is on the line because they have so much trust in their abilities to clear the ropes. Today we will talk about 3 players with most international sixes in 2019.

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#3 Chris Gayle

Whenever we talk about hitting sixes, Chris Gayle is always going to be up there somewhere. He didn’t play as many games as the other two players in the list ahead, but he is still not too far behind. Gayle had just 15 ODI and 2 T20I innings under his belt in 2019 in which he smashed 58 sixes.

Gayle has a very long reach which obviously helps him in hitting sixes because he is able to get to the pitch of the ball even if the ball is only slightly full and not quite a half volley. But, it’s not the only reason why he hits so many sixes. The most important aspect of Gayle’s six hitting ability is the body strength that he possesses. The ball doesn’t always need to come out of the middle of his willow to travel the distance. Even if he gets a decent chunk of the bat, it’s enough to clear the boundary most of the time.

#2 Eoin Morgan

The Engand skipper Eoin Morgan has a power game

The England white ball captain Eoin Morgan plays only two formats of the game, but he is still at no. 2 in the list of the leading six hitters in 2019. In 27 innings that Morgan played in the ODIs and the T20Is together in 2019, he hit a total of 60 sixes. Morgan hit 41 sixes in the ODIs and 19 in T20Is Morgan created a world record of hitting the most number of sixes in an ODI when he hit 17 sixes against Afghanistan in the ODI World Cup played earlier this year.

Morgan is a good timer of the ball, but he has got the power game as well. He is a bottom-handed player and generates a lot of power with the whip of his wrists at the very last second while he makes connection with the ball. He is one of those players who can hit sixes in the long on-midwicket area from deliveries on the off-stump line.

#1 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma is a wonderful timer of the ball

Out of the 47 innings that Rohit Sharma played across the three formats of the game in 2019, he put the ball into the stands 78 times - with 20 sixes in Test matches, 36 in ODIs and 22 in T20 Internationals. The 32-year old was in remarkable form throughout the year both in red ball and white ball cricket and dominated every bowling attack he came across.

He is a natural timer of the ball and he doesn’t slog while he is trying to hit sixes. With the pull shot that he plays, he hardly ever tries to keep it on the ground. He presses slightly forward, picks the length, rocks back and gets under the ball to hit it over the ropes rather than getting on top of the bounce to keep it on the ground.

Even the drive that he plays with the straight bat, he often gives himself a little bit of room so that he can extend his arms to be able to play the ball in the air.