Rohit Sharma equals Chris Gayle’s Record of Smashing Sixes in ODIs! Second Most After Shahid Afridi Now!
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has once again proven his power-hitting abilities as an opening batter by achieving another impressive record in his One-Day International (ODI) career. The Hitman tallied the former legendary West Indies batter Chris Gayle’s record of 331 sixes in ODIs.
During the 3rd and final ODI match of the recently concluded series against Sri Lanka, Rohit Sharma scored 35 runs from just 20 balls (including 6 fours and 1 six) on 7th August 2024 at R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Currently, Rohit Sharma holds the record as the second most six-hitter in the history of ODI cricket and still ranks behind the former Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi behind the list. As a result, Rohit requires just an additional 21 sixes to surpass Afridi’s record.
Interestingly, the 36-year-old right-handed batter required only 257 ODI innings to achieve this record, whereas it took 294 innings for Gayle to accomplish the crucial milestone.
Moreover, Rohit Sharma becomes the fourth-highest-scoring Indian batter against Sri Lanka by accumulating 2000-plus runs and joins the legendary cricketers in the list such as Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and MS Dhoni.
Batsman with the Most Sixes in ODI: From Shahid Afridi to MS Dhoni
Here is the list of the top 5 batsmen who struck the most sixes in their ODI career:
| S.No | Player | Nation | Number of Sixes and Innings |
| 1. | Shahid Afridi (1996-2015) | Pakistan | 351 Sixes in 369 innings (398 matches) |
| 2. | Rohit Sharma (2007-present) | India | 331 Sixes in 257 innings (265 matches) |
| 3. | Chris Gayle (1999-2019) | West Indies | 331 Sixes in 294 innings (301 matches) |
| 4. | Sanath Jayasuriya (1989-2011) | Sri Lanka | 270 Sixes in 433 innings (445 matches) |
| 5. | MS Dhoni (2004-2019) | India | 229 Sixes in 297 innings (350 matches) |
How Rohit Sharma Equalled Chris Gayle’s Record of Smashing 2nd Most Sixes in ODIs?
In the 2nd ball of the 4th over bowled by the Sri Lankan bowler Maheesh Theekshana, Rohit Sharma smashed a six that easily passed over the boundary ropes and this helped him equal Chris Gayle’s record of hitting 331 ODI sixes. Overall, Rohit Sharma struck 8 sixes in 3 matches of the ODI series against Sri Lanka.
Batsman to score most runs in ODIs against Sri Lanka: From Sachin Tendulkar to Rohit Sharma
The 35-run-knock played by Rohit Sharma, helps him to secure a spot in the record books of batters who scored the most runs in ODIs against Sri Lanka among these top batters:
| S.No | Player | Nation | Runs in ODIs vs Sri Lanka |
| 1. | Sachin Tendulkar | India | 3,113 runs in 80 innings |
| 2. | Virat Kohli | India | 2,652 runs in 54 innings |
| 3. | MS Dhoni | India | 2,383 runs in 53 innings |
| 4. | Inzamam-Ul-Haq | Pakistan | 2,265 runs in 58 innings |
| 5. | Saeed Anwar | Pakistan | 2,198 runs in 52 innings |
| 6. | Rohit Sharma | India | 2,021 runs in 53 innings |
Rohit Sharma: The Only Highest Run Scorer for India in the 3-Match ODI Series vs Sri Lanka
It would be a shocking fact to know that Rohit Sharma was the only Indian batter to score more than 100 runs for his team in the 3-match ODI series against Sri Lanka. He accumulated 157 runs in three matches at a batting average of 52.33 and strike rate of 141.44. Here are the impressive scores of Rohit Sharma in this 50-over series:
- 1st ODI: 47-ball-58-runs with 7 fours and 3 sixes
- 2nd ODI: 44-ball-64 runs with 5 fours and 4 sixes
- 3rd ODI: 20-ball-35 runs with 6 fours and 1 six.
Whereas the rest of the batters were able to score only double-digit scores which includes popular names such as:
- Axar Patel: 79 runs
- Virat Kohli: 58 runs
- Shubman Gill: 57 runs
- Washington Sundar: 50 runs
- Shreyas Iyer: 38 runs
- Shivam Dube: 34 runs
↻ India & Bangladesh To Host Men’s Asia Cup 2025 & 2027
Conclusion:
Despite Rohit Sharma playing a fiery knock as the opening batter, the other Indian batters weren’t able to make effective contributions to chase down the target of 249 runs and faced a humiliating 110-run-loss against Sri Lanka. Most importantly, Charith Asalanka’s led side was able to create history with the 110-run victory in the 3rd ODI match and successfully concluded their 27-year waiting period of winning the bilateral ODI series against India.
However, Rohit Sharma’s ability to hit huge sixes and clear the boundary ropes makes him a top-notch player in the history of limited-overs cricket. Also, he is the only batsman to score two double centuries in ODIs against the Island nation.
Ultimately, the veteran opening batsman has maximum opportunities to achieve sensational milestones in his career to become the most powerful six-hitting batsman in ODI history.
