Samoa's Darius Visser set a new world record today (August 20), as he smashed six sixes and managed to take a total of 39 runs in one over against Vanuatu.
The two sides were facing off in a Men's T20 World Cup qualifying match for the East Asia-Pacific region, in Apia. Samoan captain Caleb Jasmat won the toss and chose to bat.
His decision looked a poor one initially, as Samoa lost their top three of Sean Cotter, Daniel Burgess and Solomon Nash inside the first four overs. Saumani Tiai departed soon after to leave them reeling at 18-4 in 5.2 overs.
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Visser, batting at No.4, then joined hands with captain Jasmat to help resurrect the innings before the latter was dismissed in the 12th over, to break a stand of 43. Visser was batting on 34 off 24 balls when the wicket fell.
Darius Visser sets new world record with 39-run over
After a couple of overs of consolidation, it was in the 15th that Visser cut loose. The first ball from Nalin Nipiko was a drag-down, which he sent over midwicket for six. The next one, overpitched, went over cow corner before Visser pulled off a near-action replay off the third ball. Three deliveries, three sixes.
The next ball was a low full-toss, tapped to cover, but the bowler had overstepped. Visser remained on strike, and off the resulting free-hit shuffled across his stumps and lifted Nipiko over square leg for a fourth maximum in the over. There was some respite just afterwards, as a powerful hit down the ground from Visser cannoned into the stumps at the bowler's end, resulting in a dot ball.
The next ball was also a dot, seemingly ending the over – but Nipiko had overstepped for a second time. It was about to get worse for the bowler, as the free-hit was dispatched for a fifth six, off a full toss above waist height to take the no-ball count in the over to three.
The final ball was a low full-toss outside off stump, which Visser once again managed to shovel over the leg side boundary, to become only the fourth man after Yuvraj Singh, Kieron Pollard and Dipendra Singh Airee to hit six sixes in an over in T20I cricket. Samoa's total of 39 runs (six sixes + three no-balls) also set a new world record, eclipsing the existing record of 36 in an over.
Visser was not done yet, as he continued to plunder the Vanuatu bowling. He put on 103 for the sixth wicket with Fereti Suluoto, scoring 92 of those runs himself. By the time he was dismissed in the final over, Visser had scored 132 out of Samoa's eventual total of 174 all out – another world record.
With 75.86% of Samoa's runs scored in the innings, Visser went past Aaron Finch's 75.1% (172 out of 229) for Australia, to register the highest percentage of a team's runs in an innings, in men's T20 internationals. Sierra Leone's Alusine Turay (78 out of 111) and New Zealand's Kane Williamson (42 out of 70) are the only others to register 70% or more.
He then returned with the ball to pick up 1-29, and help his side restrict Vanuatu to 164-9 and secure a 10-run victory. To nobody's surprise, Visser was named the Player of the Match.
Image credit: ICC
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