The finisher is a role, not a statistic: cricket’s official records do not list who bats at the death. So this guide uses the closest numbers that ESPNcricinfo does publish – career strike rate, not-outs and sixes – as of October 2026 to show who the leading power-hitters and closers are in ODIs and T20Is, and then gives a clearly labelled opinion at the end.
ODIs: highest career strike rates
Andre Russell has the highest career strike rate in ODI cricket, 130.22 in 56 matches, followed by Glenn Maxwell at 126.70 over a much longer career of 149 matches that includes four centuries. Heinrich Klaasen has the best average of this group, 43.69, at a strike rate of 117.05.
| Batter | Team | Span | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike rate | Sixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andre Russell | West Indies | 2011-2019 | 56 | 1,034 | 27.21 | 130.22 | 57 |
| Glenn Maxwell | Australia | 2012-2025 | 149 | 3,990 | 33.81 | 126.70 | 155 |
| Heinrich Klaasen | South Africa | 2018-2025 | 60 | 2,141 | 43.69 | 117.05 | 71 |
| Shahid Afridi | Pakistan | 1996-2015 | 398 | 8,064 | 23.57 | 117.00 | 351 |
| Jos Buttler | England | 2012-2026 | 204 | 5,678 | 39.15 | 115.54 | 193 |
MS Dhoni and the art of finishing a chase
Dhoni’s ODI record shows a different kind of finisher: 10,773 runs at an average of 50.57 and a strike rate of 87.56, with 84 not-outs in 297 innings. That is the highest number of not-outs among the players in ESPNcricinfo’s ODI sixes table (Virat Kohli has 48, Sachin Tendulkar 41, AB de Villiers 39 and Rohit Sharma 37). He also hit 229 sixes, fifth in the ODI list.
T20Is: strike rate and power
In T20Is, Abhishek Sharma has the highest career strike rate on the list, 196.83, across 70 matches, although he is an opener. Among players who often bat later, Tim David has 1,679 runs at 168.40 with 15 not-outs in 63 innings, and Glenn Maxwell has five T20I centuries and 150 sixes.
| Batter | Team | Span | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike rate | Sixes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abhishek Sharma | India | 2024-2026 | 70 | 2,240 | 33.43 | 196.83 | 158 |
| Finn Allen | New Zealand | 2021-2026 | 65 | 1,764 | 28.91 | 170.10 | 123 |
| Tim David | Australia/Singapore | 2019-2026 | 74 | 1,679 | 34.97 | 168.40 | 109 |
| Suryakumar Yadav | India | 2021-2026 | 113 | 3,272 | 36.35 | 162.94 | 179 |
| Glenn Maxwell | Australia | 2012-2026 | 130 | 2,897 | 28.97 | 154.42 | 150 |
| Jos Buttler | England | 2011-2026 | 163 | 4,384 | 34.79 | 150.13 | 192 |
Who is the best finisher?
This is an opinion, not a statistic. For ODIs, Dhoni is the benchmark for finishing chases, while Russell, Maxwell, Klaasen and Buttler are the highest-strike-rate hitters. For T20Is, Buttler, Maxwell, Tim David and Suryakumar Yadav are the names with the strongest combination of strike rate and sixes in the data above. For India, Hardik Pandya and Rinku Singh are the finishers most often discussed, but they are not covered by the ESPNcricinfo tables used here, so no ranking of them is attempted.
Frequently asked questions
Who has the highest ODI strike rate? Andre Russell, 130.22.
Who has the best ODI record for finishing? Dhoni has 84 not-outs and an average of 50.57, which is the standard cited for finishing chases.
Figures come from ESPNcricinfo career records as of October 2026.
