Most Sixes in a Test Match Ever | Test Cricket Records

 

The Test match is one of the slowest forms of cricket where a lot of tactics come into play. The batsmen tend to stick to safe and sound shots. Therefore, it can be quite rare to come across sixes in this format of the game.

Here is a top 20 list of the most sixes in a Test match:

Player 6s Team Opposition Venue Date
Wasim Akram 12 Pakistan Zimbabwe Sheikhupura, India 17/10/1996
NJ Astle 11 New Zealand England Christchurch, New Zealand 13/03/2002
ML Hayden 11 Australia Zimbabwe Perth, Australia 09/10/2003
BB McCullum 11 New Zealand Pakistan Sharjah, UAE 26/11/2014
BB McCullum 11 New Zealand Sri Lanka Christchurch, New Zealand 26/12/2014
BA Stokes 11 England South Africa Cape Town, South Africa 02/01/2016
WR Hammond 10 England New Zealand Auckland, New Zealand 31/03/1933
CL Cairns 9 New Zealand Zimbabwe Auckland, New Zealand 20/01/1996
Inzamam-ul-Haq 9 Pakistan New Zealand Lahore, Pakistan 01/05/2002
TG Southee 9 New Zealand England Napier, New Zealand 22/03/2008
CH Gayle 9 West Indies Sri Lanka Galle, West Indies 15/11/2010
SO Hetmyer 9 West Indies Bangladesh Mirpur, Pakistan 30/11/2018
NS Sidhu 8 India Sri Lanka Lucknow, India 18/01/1994
AC Gilchrist 8 Australia South Africa Johannesburg, South Africa 22/02/2002
KC Sangakkara 8 Sri Lanka Bangladesh Chattogram, Bangladesh 04/02/2014
JO Holder 8 West Indies England Bridgetown, West Indies 23/01/2019
BA Stokes 8 England Australia Leeds, England 22/08/2019
MA Agarwal 8 India Bangladesh Indore, India 14/11/2019
B Sutcliffe 7 New Zealand South Africa Johannesburg, South Africa 24/12/1953
IVA Richards 7 West Indies England St John’s, West Indies 11/04/1986

Wasim Akram – 12 sixes (363 balls)

Wasim Akram tops the list for the most sixes in a Test match by any player. He was able to hit a whopping 12 sixes in his innings against Zimbabwe back in 1996. The Pakistani all-rounder was able to hit a stunning 257 not out of just 363 balls. There were also 22 fours in the game, and the contribution from Akram with the ball also earned him the man of the match title. Pakistan and Zimbabwe drew the game.

Nathan Astle – 11 sixes (168 balls)

Nathan Astle came close to deciding one of the epic contests between England and New Zealand, has a fine inning of 200 not out almost helped the Kiwis win the game. Astle hit 11 sixes in an innings that produced the double century off just 168 balls. The majority of the action in this Test match came in the second innings for both England and New Zealand.

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Matthew Hayden – 11 sixes (for 37 balls)

Known as one of the powerful hitters of the ball, Matthew Hayden cemented his reputation once again as he hit 11 sixes in an innings that produced a whopping 380 runs from just 437 balls against Zimbabwe in 2003. Australia was able to get a victory through an innings and 175 runs in this epic match. Hayden also punished Zimbabwe bowlers with 38 fours, as he almost managed to hit 400 whilst still having a strike rate of 85+.

Brendon McCullum – 11 sixes (188 balls)

Brendon McCullum played a captain’s innings against Pakistan to hit 202 runs from just 188 balls. This is one of the latest innings from the Kiwi batsman to make its way into the list of most sixes in a Test match. Pakistan who had elected to bat first ended up losing by an innings and 80 runs. It was also incredible that McCullum, on his own, hit more sixes in the game than the entire Pakistan team managed over the two innings.

Brendon McCullum – 11 sixes (134 balls)

Just a few months after making it to the list of most sixes in a Test match, Brendon McCullum once again hit a team off the park on numerous instances. This time, it was the turn of Sri Lanka to suffer at the hands of the Kiwis with McCullum hitting 195 of just 134 balls. The innings included 18 fours and 11 sixes. However, McCullum fell just short of hitting a second double century. Yet, New Zealand could have had very few complaints about the impressive performance of the captain.

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Ben Stokes – 11 sixes (198 balls)

One of the top England batsmen of the recent generation, Ben Stokes quickly made it to the list of most sixes in a Test match following his fine innings against South Africa in 2016. Stokes managed 258 runs from just 198 balls in an innings. Stokes was able to hammer the South African bowlers all over the park with 30 boundaries and 11 sixes.

Wally Hammond – 10 sixes

Wally Hammond was one of the first names on this list as he set a record of 10 sixes in a Test innings back in 1933 while playing against England. In a game that has heavily dominated by the bowlers, Hammond came up with an excellent inning of 336 runs to help England post a huge total. However, England ended up drawing the game.

Chris Cairns – 9 sixes (96 balls)

One of the top New Zealand batsmen of his generation, Chris Cairns ravaged Zimbabwe in the second innings after hitting nine sixes and 10 boundaries in the 96 ball innings. Cairns was able to manage 120 runs as these were able to get a comfortable draw in difficult circumstances. The New Zealand batsmen were able to come up with a modest score in the first innings but Cairns’ helped spice up the match in the second innings with this brilliant knock.

Inzamam-ul-Haq – 9 sixes (436 balls)

Inzamam-ul-Haq is widely regarded as one of the top Pakistani batsmen of recent generations. He was able to cement this reputation with an incredible 329 from just 436 balls. The innings were mostly comprised of boundaries, as Inzamam-ul-Haq was able to send the New Zealand bowlers to all corners of the park. Inzamam-ul-Haq hit 9 sixes but does look pale in comparison with the 38 fours managed in the 436 balls. Pakistan was able to celebrate a victory with an innings and 324 runs in this match.

Tim Southee – 9 sixes (40 balls)

Tim Southee produced an all-round performance against England even if New Zealand came short by 121 runs. Southee claimed five wickets in the first innings and went on to hit a staggering 77 not out with the bat in the second innings. Southee’s innings came as a desperate attempt from New Zealand to get a victory in the game after very disappointing first innings. Southee was not able to claim any wickets in the second innings in what turned out to be the decisive point of the game.