NAGPUR: Indian skipper Rohit Sharma now has the most sixes in the history of T20I cricket. The attacking batter accomplished this feat during his side's second T20I against Australia in Nagpur on Friday.
Rohit Sharma hit a delightful unbeaten 46 of 20 balls in the match, helping the Men in Blue reach the 91-run target in a rain-truncated match reduced to eight overs per side. His inning was decorated with four boundaries and four sixes.
Now Rohit has a total of 176 sixes in T20I cricket. In second place is New Zealand opener Martin Guptill (172). They are followed by West Indies legend Chris Gayle (124), former England skipper Eoin Morgan (120), and Australian veteran Aaron Finch (119).
Rohit has scored 3,677 runs in 138 matches across 130 innings in T20I cricket, with four centuries and 28 half-centuries at an average of 32.53. Out of these 3,677 runs, 1,056 runs have come using sixes. That means, 28.71 percent of Rohit's runs have been made by sending the ball into the skies.
Coming to the match, it was reduced to eight overs per side due to rain. India opted to bowl first after winning the toss. Australia posted 90/5 in their eight overs. Knocks from Aaron Finch (31 off 15 balls) and Matthew Wade (43* off 20) helped Australia post a challenging total on the board.
Axar Patel was the pick of the Indian bowlers, taking 2/13 in two overs. Jasprit Bumrah also returned to action with a two-over spell of 1/23. Pacer Harshal Patel leaked runs once again, giving away 32 runs in just two overs.
Chasing 91, Team India was off to a great start, posting 39 in just 2.5 overs before KL Rahul was dismissed for 10 off 5 balls. Spinner Adam Zampa helped Australia make a brief comeback, trapping Virat Kohli (11 off 6 balls) and Suryakumar Yadav (golden duck) quickly, reducing India to 55/3 in 4.3 overs. But it was opener Rohit Sharma (46* off 20 balls), who kept one end steady and his partner Dinesh Karthik (10* off 2 balls) finished off things in style with a six and four in the first two balls of the final over. India finished at 92/4 in 7.2 overs.
Adam Zampa delivered a brilliant spell of 3/16 in two overs but could not guide his team to a win. Pat Cummins also took one wicket.
Rohit was adjudged as 'Man of the Match' for his brilliant 46* off 20 balls, consisting of four boundaries and four sixes. India has now levelled the series 1-1, with the decider set to be played in Hyderabad on September 25.