Stats: New Zealand break world record for most sixes in a Test innings

With 19 sixes in the first innings of the third and final Test against Pakistan, at Sharjah, New Zealand have broken the world record for the most number of sixes in a Test innings, beating Australia’s record of 17 maximums against Zimbabwe at Perth in 2003.

In reply to the home team’s first innings score of 351, New Zealand, powered by centuries from McCullum (202 off 188) and Kane Williamson (192 off 244), have scored 637/8 at stumps on Day 3. With the play suspended on Day 1 in the aftermath of Phillip Hughes’ tragic death after being hit by a bouncer during a Sheffield Shield match in Australia, the Kiwis, trailing the series 0-1, needed to be aggressive to make a game out of this fixture and they have done exactly that by scoring at 4.90 runs per over.

Brendon McCullum

With a lead of 286 runs and a minimum of 180 overs remaining, the visitors have put themselves in a great position to push for a win and, in turn, level the series. It would be interesting to see if McCullum waits for his team to be all-out or declares early.

Here is the list of teams with the most number of sixes in an innings in Test cricket:

By	Against	Sixes	Year	Venue
New Zealand	Pakistan	22	2014	Sharjah
Australia	Zimbabwe	17	2003	Perth
Pakistan	New Zealand	15	2002	Lahore
India	Sri Lanka	15	2009	Mumbai
South Africa	West Indies	15	2010	Bassetere
Pakistan	Zimbabwe	13	1996	Sheikhpura
New Zealand	South Africa	13	2004	Auckland
Pakistan	England	13	2005	Faisalabad

The Test has already seen a slew of records being broken, but the cricketers, still recovering from the sad loss of Hughes, haven’t displayed any emotions on the field.

Note: Stats updated till November 30, 2014