Watch: Maharashtra captain Ruturaj Gaikwad hit seven sixes in an over against Uttar Pradesh in the 2022/23 Vijay Hazare Trophy quarter-final in Ahmedabad to equal a List A record on November 28, 2022.
Exactly one year later, on November 28, 2023, he supplied another feat of batting brilliance, smashing an unbeaten 123 off 57 balls for India in the third T20I against Australia.
In the 2022 game, Maharashtra were 272-5 after 48 overs when left-arm spinner Shiva Singh (8-0-45-0 at this point) came on to bowl to Gaikwad, who was on 165 from 147 balls. At the other end was wicketkeeper Satyajit Nawale, on a four-ball one.
Gaikwad hit Shiva’s first four balls for sixes, over mid-wicket, over long-on, between mid-wicket and square leg, and over long-off. Then Shiva overstepped, and the next ball sailed over long-off as well. The next two balls – the first of which was a free hit – cleared the wide long-on fence.
Shiva finished with 9-0-88-0. In the process, he equalled Central District medium pacer Willem Ludick’s dubious world record for conceding most runs in an over in List A cricket. In a Ford Trophy match of 2018/19, Luddick conceded four, six (off a no-ball), six (off another no-ball), six, one to Brett Hampton of Northern Districts. Then Joe Clarke got strike, and hit three sixes in three balls to conclude the over.
The world record of most runs in a List A over by a single batter is now 42, six runs clear of the erstwhile 36. Herschelle Gibbs and Jaskaran Malhotra are the only ones to have done this in ODIs, off Daan van Bunge and Gaudi Toka respectively, while Elton Chigumbura (off Alauddin Babu), JP Duminy (off Eddie Leie), and Thisara Perera (off Dilhan Cooray) have also hit six sixes in an over List A cricket. Babu’s over went for 39 and Leie’s for 37: they bowled extras.
The sixth of Gaikwad’s sixes took him to his first List A double-hundred. He finished on an unbeaten 220, from 159 balls, with 10 fours and 16 sixes. The 16 sixes are now a new record in the Vijay Hazare Trophy: he went past N Jagadeesan’s 15, set earlier in the tournament. Of Indians, only Rohit Sharma has hit 16 sixes (during his famous 264). Even around the world, only D’Arcy Short (23), Gerrie Snyman (17), and Eoin Morgan (17) have hit more.
Watch Ruturaj Gaikwad’s sixes off Shiva Singh here:
6⃣,6⃣,6⃣,6⃣,6⃣nb,6⃣,6⃣
Ruturaj Gaikwad smashes 4⃣3⃣ runs in one over! 🔥🔥
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— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) November 28, 2022
