IPL 2018: 5 biggest sixes of the season till now

The Indian Premier League is all about entertainment and frenzy. People expect to witness the flashiest of shots and breathtaking cricketing adventures out there in the middle and IPL 2018 hasn't disappointed in that sense.

From stunning catches to exquisite cover drives, lightning-quick stumpings to innovative shots, the ongoing season of the biggest cricketing league in the world has everything on offer.

Considering the IPL is a 20 overs-per-side game, what one needs to build pressure on the opposition is to score quick runs while batting and scalp wickets in quick succession while bowling.

When it comes to scoring runs, our IPL stars are equipped with abundant talent. The current season of the tournament has seen some monstrous sixes hit by some of the mightiest batsmen in the business. Let's take a look at the biggest sixes of IPL 2018 till date, which player hit them and how exactly the shot panned out.

#5 Dinesh Karthik against Rajasthan Royals

At the very outset of IPL 2018, Dinesh Karthik was entrusted with the all-important responsibility of leading the Kolkata Knight Riders into battle. With his predecessor, Gautam Gambhir, having led the franchise to two title victories, the pressure on Karthik was humongous. However, the calm-headed batsman-keeper chose to channel his focus into his game and, voila, we saw Karthik going all guns blazing at the opposition with his batting as well as his captaincy!

Karthik is already the leading run-scorer for his side with 194 runs under his belt in 6 matches. However, one particular shot of his that wowed all the spectators was the 19th over maximum that he hit off Ben Laughlin's bowling against the Rajasthan side. With KKR requiring 4 runs off the last 2 deliveries of the innings, the KKR skipper chose to take matters into his own hands. Laughlin bowled a length ball, which Karthik smacked over long-on to send the ball soaring for a distance of 102 metres, before landing in the stands.

#4 Chris Lynn against Kings XI Punjab

Chris Lynn hit a 103 meter six against KXIP

Chris Lynn's fiery batting skills are enough to whisk the game away from under the nose of any opposition, no matter how strong they may be. One of the hardest-hitting batsmen that KKR possess, Lynn has scored 181 runs in 6 matches at a strike of 139.23 this time around and looks to be in sublime touch. Although his mammoth hit against the KXIP at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata, was not enough to win his side the match, it evoked a sense of awe from one and all.

Batting first in a high-octane encounter that would, unfortunately, be curtailed due to rain, Lynn slammed 74 runs off 41 deliveries, and looked set at one point in the innings to become the second KKR batsman after Brendon McCullum to score an IPL century. It was off the second delivery of the 13th over that Lynn chose to channel his batting firepower into a 103 metre six. With Andrew Tye erroneously bowling a length delivery, Lynn smashed it over long-on to register the fourth longest maximum of IPL 2018 till now.

#3 Andre Russell against Chennai Super Kings

Andre Russell's 105

metre

six against CSK was a beauty

Andre Russell is the go-to man for the Kolkata Knight Riders whenever they need quick runs. Russell doesn't spare even the best of bowlers and just goes with the flow, hitting gargantuan sixes all over the ground. Having returned in the ongoing season of the IPL after a year-long hiatus from the game, many had ruled Russell out as a possible threat. However, the mighty Jamaican proved them all wrong and how!

The 29-year-old all-rounder's stunner of an innings came against the Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Batting first, KKR needed to put up a hefty total on the board to defend and Russell rose to the challenge. In a knock which consisted of eleven maximums, the one he hit off the second delivery of the 17th over dazzled every one watching and traversed 105 metres. Bowling to him was his Windies teammate, Dwayne Bravo, who made a slight error while attempting to bowl a yorker. The resultant length ball was knocked out of the park by Russell over long-on.

#2 AB de Villiers against Delhi Daredevils

AB de Villiers is known for his ability to hit sixes at will

If one were to describe AB de Villiers, new adjectives would have to be added to the dictionary because the existing ones have already been exhausted in praise of this man! Every time RCB are in a pickle, it's de Villiers more often than not who dons the Superman cape to rescue his side. Gargantuan sixes, spectacular boundaries and a swashbuckling attitude, de Villiers has it all.

It was the Delhi Daredevils who were at the receiving end of Mr. 360°'s magical batting. The tenth over, which was bowled by Rahul Tewatia, saw de Villiers switch gears. A similar delivery to what he had been dismissed in the previous match was lobbed by de Villiers over mid-wicket for a monstrous six. The 106 metre six smashed into the roof of the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, making it the second longest six of the season till now.

#1 AB de Villiers against Chennai Super Kings

ABD's

111-metre

sixer is the longest this season thus far

It's always an exciting affair when the Royal Challengers Bangalore take on the Chennai Super Kings. While the Virat Kohli versus MS Dhoni rivalry is always a talking point before, during and after the match, the last clash between the two sides saw AB de Villiers steal the cherry with his exquisite batting. Although RCB set up a huge total of 205 runs in the first innings, some top-notch batting from Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni saw CSK home in a nail-biting last-over finish.

However, it was de Villiers' 111 metre-long six that left spectators gaping. The talented cricketer hit 68 runs off 30 deliveries, a knock comprising 8 sixes and 2 boundaries. Imran Tahir was entrusted with the responsibility of bowling the eleventh over and come the fourth delivery of the over, ABD smacked the ball right out of the stadium, never to be found again!

De Villiers went down on one knee and hoisted the ball over deep mid-wicket nonchalantly, while everyone on the ground was left swiveling their heads left and right to locate the ball. It's been recorded as the longest six of the tournament thus far and the tenth longest maximum in the history of the tournament.

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