Most Sixes In ODI World Cup History

Most Sixes In ODI World Cup History

The power-hitters in cricket are the most fashionable commodities for any team regardless of the format. Hitting a six can boost the morale of any batter but then making it as a habit will make him or her dangerous to the opposition bowling attack. Spectators’ demand to watch a six sail into the stands is seemingly endless.

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Players who can constantly clear the ropes are invaluable assets for the team management. However, charging against the bowlers in the ODI format needs to be done with calculative risk else batters end up throwing their wickets. Let’s take a look at cricketers who have smashed the most sixes in ODI World Cup History.

Who has hit the most sixes in ODI World Cup History?

Universe Boss Chris Gayle holds the bragging rights of dispatching the most balls in the stands in the history of the ODI World Cup. The left-handed West Indies’ swashbuckling batter, who has played in the showpiece event across five editions, smashed 49 sixes in 34 World Cup innings from 2003 to 2019. 16 - the most number of sixes that came of the southpaw’s willow in an innings en route to his maiden double-century against Zimbabwe in the 2015 World Cup in Canberra.

Gayle set up the record for most sixes in an innings in the World Cup until England’s Eoin Morgan pipped that with his 17 maximums against Afghanistan in the 2019 World Cup league match in Manchester. Morgan smashed 26 sixes overall from 27 innings in the showpiece event during his period between 2007 and 2019.

Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers, popularly recognised as Mr 360°, sits second on the list of most sixes in ODI World Cup History. De Villiers clobbered 37 sixes in 23 innings across three editions of the tournament - 2007, 2011 & 2015. In his splendorous unbeaten knock of 162 against the West Indies at SCG in 2015, he hammered eight sixes, which is the most by him in a single innings of a World Cup.

Ricky Ponting joins Gayle and de Villiers as the only third player to hit more than 30 sixes in the marquee event. The former Australia skipper hit 31 sixes in 42 innings after featuring in five different World Cup tournaments in three different decades. Bredon McCullum is placed at fourth position with 29 sixes and is the only player to have a strike rate over 100 in the list of top 10 after AB de Villiers.

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Legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar leads the charts for India, having dispatched the ball into the stands on 27 instances in his six-time participation at the prestigious cricket tournament. Tendulkar managed to match his contemporary Sanath Jayasuriya’s tally (27 sixes) before bidding adieu to the World Cup in 2011.

Although India’s Rohit Sharma currently does not exist in the top players with most sixes in ODI World Cup History, he isn’t that far away of breaking into the tally in the next edition in India. Rohit has amassed 23 sixes in 17 World Cup games and is likely to play at least nine round-robin matches for India in the 13th edition. Only time will tell how many players Rohit can leapfrog in the 10 most sixes in ODI World Cup History.