From Kapil Dev To MS Dhoni: Iconic Sixes Of Indian Cricket History:
A timely six is often a joy to the batting team and their fans alike, from being a match-sealing shot to one frequently used to puncture the morale of many great oppositions. There have been several such moments in Indian cricket alone where a momentous six not only changed the momentum of the match but also reflected a dramatic change in the batting attitude of the team over the long term.
We Take A Look At Some Such Iconic Shots By Indian Batsmen For A Six In This Article:
Notwithstanding hundreds of Mohammad Azharuddin and Ravi Shastri, India was in trouble at the 1990 England Tour’s 1st Test at 430/9 and required 24 more runs to escape the follow-on. As Kapil Dev, who was batting on 53, saw Narendra Hirwani coming out to bat at No. 11, he realized that it was his duty to wipe out the deficit.
During the next over bowled by off-break bowler Eddie Hemmings, Kapil played out the 1st 2 balls before launching a vicious attack of four back-to-back sixes as the jam-packed crowd at Lord’s watched in amazement.
All the sixes went over the head of the bowler because in a matter of minutes England’s hopes of enforcing the follow-on went up in vain. While Hirwani was out next ball and India went on to lose the match, Kapil’s sixes showed that his team weren’t pushovers and had a powerful ability to throw the counter-punch back.
Every Indian cricket fan recalls the famous big hits Sachin Tendulkar played in Sharjah (1998) during his twin Desert Storm innings vs Australia. However during the 2003 World Cup, his upper-cut for six off Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar is as iconic as any other six the Master Blaster hit during his 24-year long international career.
With India chasing a tough 274 runs to win in a crucial World Cup game at Centurion, Sachin got his team off to a flier and it all began in the 2nd over of Akhtar’s bowling, Sachin lofted a short and wide ball at 151 kmph over a mighty six over the Third-Man area.
The next 2 balls vanished for boundaries too. Fair to say, Akhtar couldn’t recover from the mauling, and even though he took Sachin’s wicket after he scored 98, after that Sachin’s gigantic six, Pakistan still played a catching-up game.
Yuvraj Singh holds the world record for the fastest fifty T20I, a record that is still unclaimed, After being irked by an altercation with Andrew Flintoff during India’s 2007 World T20 match vs England, Yuvraj unleashed all his fury on fast bowler Stuart Broad scooping up Six consecutive maximums in an over to smash a 50 off just 12 balls.
The feat of Yuvraj was not only instrumental in India’s eventual title win, but also helped a young team under MS Dhoni to turn their disappointment with the ODI World Cup into the heights of winning the first ever T20 World Cup.
“Dhoni finishes off in style! A brilliant strike into the crowd. India lifts the World Cup after 28 years!” High-pitched voice former commentator Ravi Shastri left an indelible mark on the minds of Indian cricket fans with his finishing touches during the 2011 World Cup final when MS Dhoni scored the winning six to win the trophy for his side.
During India’s all 3 ICC trophy-winning campaigns this millennium, the captain who was at the helm was at the center stage of the 2011 final vs Sri Lanka, Dhoni’s shot of launching Nuwan Kulasekara into the stands certainly signaled the start of a nationwide party.
Honorable mentions:
Dinesh Karthik’s last-ball six to seal the 2018 Nidahas Trophy.
Sachin Tendulkar’s out-of-stadium six off Andrew Caddick’s in 2003 World Cup.
Sourav Ganguly’s several sixes onto the Sharjah stadium roof over the years.
