Top 5 New Zealand batsmen with most Test sixes

New Zealand have been the perennial black horses in cricket who have managed to outdo what's expected of them on a consistent basis.

The Black Caps' success has traditionally been a result of collective teamwork rather than an individual's brilliance and that's always a good thing to see in a team sport.

New Zealand are a very strong side in home conditions with the seaming conditions always presenting a problem to the visiting side. However, the relatively small size of the grounds does offer some respite to the batsmen under such circumstances.

Batsmen who like to play their shots enjoy playing in New Zealand as even mishits sometimes find their way over the boundary ropes. The New Zealand players who grow up playing cricket in such conditions are thus used to playing their shots the other way round, even on away tours.

Over the years, There have been a number of aggressive players for New Zealand who have not been afraid to take the aerial route, even in the Test format. After all, the record for the most number of sixes in Test cricket is held by a New Zealander, but more on that later.

We begin the list of the Top 5 New Zealand batsmen with most sixes in Test cricket with a player who has been a great servant to the game for more than a decade and is showing no signs of slowing down.

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#5 Ross Taylor

Taylor's strokeplay is quite pleasing to the eye but he also has the ability to hit big when needed

The 33-year-old right-handed batsman is undoubtedly one of the greatest players in New Zealand's cricket history and is still going strong in all formats of the game.

With 17 centuries each in both the Test and ODI format, Taylor has earned legendary status amongst the cricket fans back home.

He also loves to play the big shots and stands fifth in terms of most sixes scored for the Black Caps in Test cricket with 44 sixes from 83 matches.

With 6246 runs at an average of above 48, Taylor has maintained a high level of consistency in the longest format of the game, making necessary adjustments to his aggressive nature to achieve success in the format.

#4 Craig McMillan

Not an agile runner between the wickets, McMillan used to deal mostly in boundaries

Craig McMillan, the former New Zealand batsman who could also do damage with the ball through his occasional medium pacers, was yet another player who loved to deal in boundaries, especially sixes.

With 54 hits over the ropes from 55 Tests, McMillan, who was not the agilest of runners between the wickets, never shied away from taking the aerial route to get runs under his belt.

With an average of above 38 with the bat, McMillan had a fruitful career in the all-whites for New Zealand. He is also one of New Zealand's most experienced ODI players with 197 matches to his name.

#3 Tim Southee

Southee scored 77 off just 40 balls on his Test debut - a knock which included 9 sixes

Though Tim Southee has earned more plaudits with the ball, the 29-year-old's position as the third highest six-getter in Test cricket for New Zealand proves that he is a pretty handy player with the bat as well.

With 63 hits over the ropes from 58 matches and 88 innings, Southee has been a hard-hitting lower order batsman for the Black Caps and at 29, he still has plenty of time on his hands to have a real crack at the top of this particular list, not just for New Zealand but overall as well.

Southee showed his big-hitting skills on his Test debut itself when he smashed 77 not out in a 40-ball innings that included nine sixes.

He has scored two more half-centuries in Test cricket since and though consistency is an issue, Southee can prove a real handful for the opposition bowlers on his day.

#2 Chris Cairns

Cairns' scored 3320 runs from 62 matches at an average of 33.53, including 5 centuries

The second spot on this list is occupied by the former all-rounder Chris Cairns, whose remarkable career has since been maligned with the match-fixing charges levied on him.

One of the greatest all-rounders in the history of the game, Cairns was equally good with both bat and ball, proving especially destructive with his big-hitting skills.

With 87 sixes from just 62 Test matches and 104 innings, Cairns' six-per-inning ratio is one of the highest in the game's history and he stands seventh in the overall list for most Test sixes.

#1 Brendon McCullum

McCullum tops the overall list for most Test sixes ahead of Australia's Adam Gilchrist

Very few players have managed to carve out a name for themselves in their nation's cricket history like Brendon McCullum did during his illustrious career for the Black Caps.

A man who transformed the way New Zealand approached the game, first as a player and then as skipper of the side, McCullum played fearless cricket and inspired his team to follow suit as well with much success.

The aggressive brand of cricket that Ne Zealand exhibited at the 2015 ODI World Cup under McCullum's captaincy was a breath of fresh air for the sport and the wicketkeeper-batsman didn't budge in his approach to the game in the Test format either.

With 107 sixes from 101 matches, McCullum leads the overall list for most Test sixes and the way he used to mercilessly hit the ball over the ropes was always a treat to watch from the fan's perspective.

McCullum also tops the list amongst the New Zeland batsmen for most sixes in the ODI format as well with 200 hits over the ropes from 228 matches.