The Highest Number of Sixes in a Test Innings – the Top Names

Any true cricket aficionado will agree that sixes are the most exciting part of watching cricket, regardless of the format. A powerful hit by the batsman, the ball flying over the boundary (even out of the field at times!), the crowd letting out a roar – sixes are definitely fun to witness. The fact that sixes in quick succession give the team a definite edge over the opposition is definitely an added advantage. Hitting a series of sixes in Test cricket is no small feat. So, here’s taking a look at the top eleven batters who have done that successfully.

1. Wasim Akram

At his finest, Wasim Akram plays in the way that most players can only wish to. An absolute master of seam and swing, he can even move the ball both ways in a delivery. However, he has shown his skills with the bat more times than once. Akram scored twelve sixes in a match against Zimbabwe in 1996, along with a total run of 257 that helped his team inch closer to victory.

2. Nathan Astle

Nathan Astle has always been one of the free spirits of cricket, who became an excellent all-rounder in ODI and Test cricket while holding on to his unshakeable confidence. He started playing for Canterbury before rising to fame in international cricket. One of his best performances was against England in 2002 when he hammered 11 sixes out of the park and scored 222 runs for New Zealand. 

3. Matthew Hayden

Hayden has always been a tower of mental and physical strength that made him push past the obstacles in his way. After years of being told that he is too limited for Test cricket due to the manner in which he plays around the front pad, he honed his skills to emerge as a fearsome batter in all formats of the game. With 380 runs against Zimbabwe in Perth, which included 11 smashing sixes, he strengthened his place in Test cricket.

4. Brendon McCullum

McCullum’s name might come at fourth and fifth on this list of the most sixes in a Test innings, but he is no less electrifying as a Test batter. In fact, apart from this record, he also holds the one for scoring the fastest century in history in his final Test match. It is simply impossible to look away when McCullum’s dominating the pitch. He scored 202 runs, including 11 sixes, in a match against Pakistan in Sharjah in 2014.

5. Ben Strokes

There is no denying that the exceptional talent and powerhouse performance of Ben Strokes have lifted the batting prowess of England to a whole new level. This rang the truest when the cricketer showed his performance in the World Cup final 2019. He is equally brilliant in Test cricket as he scored 258 runs, with 11 sixes, against South Africa in 2016.

6. Walter Reginald Hammond

Walter Reginald Hammond, who comes seventh on the list of the most sixes in a Test innings by a player, is one of the most natural players of the game out there. In fact, he was basically never even coached until he joined county cricket. Though he was self-taught, his style was textbook perfection. It also goes on to show why his record of 10 sixes scored against New Zealand remains unbroken to this day.

7. Chris Cairns

Chris Cairns is undoubtedly one of the best all-rounders the world has seen. In fact, he is the sixth player to get the all-rounder’s double of 3000 runs and 200 wickets in March 2004. In 1996, he smashed 9 sixes in a Test match against Zimbabwe in Auckland.

8. Inzamam Ul Haq

Inzamam-ul-Haq was an interesting combination of subtlety and strength when he was on the field. Experts widely regard him as one of the best batters in the world against any form of pace attack. Though he has always been advised on his fitness, he has proven his mettle with his bat time and again. He hit it out of the park with 9 sixes in the 2002 Test series against New Zealand.

9. Tim Southee

Tim Southee is one of the younger lots to be on this list of the most sixes in an innings in Tests. The right-arm swing bowler sort of burst into the international scene when he was only 19. He was given a Test debut right after he came from a smashing T20I performance. He smashed 77 runs off 40 balls in his second innings, which also included nine sixes.

10. Chris Gayle

Gayle is one of those big hitters of the game, regardless of which format he is playing in. He has shown his calibre time and again in T20 cricket, but he truly shone bright in the 2010 Test match against Sri Lanka. Gayle scored a whopping 333 runs that included 9 wonderful sixes.

The Endnote

There are no Indian names on this list as the Indian player to have scored the most sixes comes at number 13, Navjot Singh Sidhu, with his 8 sixes against Sri Lanka in Lucknow.