Three Indians In Aakash Chopra's List Of Top Six Six-Hitters

With the Indian Premier League (IPL) getting suspended till at least April 15, the fans will have to wait for some time to see fours and sixes. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the BCCI suspended the league as a precautionary measure. Along with IPL, all the major international series have been called off too.

As the fans desperately wait for the game to resume, former India opener Aakash Chopra named six batsmen who are the best hitters in the world according to him. The ex-cricketer-turned-commentator uploaded a clip on his YouTube channel where he revealed the six names. The order was from low to high.

Starting from No.6, Aakash Chopra picked South African great AB de Villiers. The former South Africa skipper is widely regarded as one of the most destructive batsmen in the history of the game. Popularly known as Mr. 360 degree, de Villiers holds the record for fastest century and half-century in ODI cricket.

Explaining the reason behind putting de Villiers at No. 6, Aakash Chopra said that de Villiers is undoubtedly the most skillful batsman at present, but few others are ahead of him in terms of hitting sixes. At five, he went for former India skipper MS Dhoni, who is arguably the greatest finisher the game has seen.

“It’s hard to put MS on number five especially after having seen him finishing the games with sixes, but later half of his career, Dhoni didn’t hit as many maximums as he did in the first half of his career, so I’m putting him at number five,” said Aakash Chopra.

MS Dhoni was followed by his former teammate Yuvraj Singh who holds the record of being the only batsman to hit six sixes in an over in T20Is. In the same game, he had scored a 12-ball fifty which is still the fastest fifty in international cricket.

“Yuvraj was absolutely exceptional and sensational cricketer. His high backlift helped him slam flat sixes, which were a treat to watch. I’m placing him at number four in this list,” said the ex-Delhi batsman.

At number three, Chopra picked West Indies power-hitter Andre Russell. For the number two position, Chopra went for Rohit Sharma. The India opener is one of the cleanest hitters of the ball in the game at the moment. So far, he has slammed 244 sixes in ODIs and 127 in T20Is.

For the top spot, he went for Chris Gayle and very few would question his pick. There are very few batsmen in the world who are as dangerous as Gayle when he is in full flow. A staggering 22 centuries and more than 13,000 runs in T20s speak volume of his power-hitting. He has smashed 534 international sixes, which is the most by any cricketer in the history of the game.

Also Read: IPL 2020: Franchises Prepare For Call-Off As Coronavirus Pandemic Worsens