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Stats - Rishabh Pant fastest to 100 sixes in Test cricket

ESPN · Sampath Bandarupalli · 2026-08-18T10:04:02+00:00 · nguồn gốc

Rishabh Pant became the first Indian batter to hit 100 sixes in Test cricket when he pulled Sri Lanka's Lahiru Kumara over fine-leg during the Galle Test. He is only the fourth to hit 100 sixes in Tests and is currently tied at third alongside Adam Gilchrist, who was the first to reach the milestone. Ahead of Pant are Ben Stokes (138) and Brendon McCullum (107). Among the four batters to hit 100 sixes, Pant is by far the fastest to the milestone in terms of number of matches, innings and balls faced. He took 31 Tests fewer than Stokes, and 41 innings and 1660 balls fewer than Gilchrist. Pant is also the quickest in terms of days from debut, although only 14 days fewer than Gilchrist. Pant's Test career started with a six, having got off the mark in the format with one off the second ball he faced. Since the start of 2025, Pant's six-hitting has gone to a different level. He has struck 32 sixes in just 16 innings in this period, including 26 in 13 innings in 2025 alone, the joint third-most by any batter in a year. He hit at least one six in 14 of these 16 innings, including in seven consecutive innings at one point, the joint-longest streak for any batter. The majority of the sixes last year came on the tour of England (17 in seven innings); only two batters have hit more sixes in a Test series. Pant hits a six every 49.34 balls in Test cricket. Among 39 batters to hit 50 or more sixes since 1991, only Tim Southee (27.70) and Shahid Afridi (37.94) have hit sixes more frequently. Pant has hit at least one six in 43 of his 89 Test innings, the best ratio for any batter with a minimum of 50 Test innings. Six-hitting is crucial to Pant's success as a Test batter and those hits have contributed nearly one-sixth of his Test runs - 16.4%, the third highest among batters with 50-plus sixes. He is one of a dozen players with 10% or more of their career runs through sixes. Only three of them, including Pant, average 40-plus in the format: Gilchrist (47.6) and Rohit Sharma (40.57). Pant's six-hitting is incomplete without a mention of his dominance against spinners. Of his first 100 sixes, 76 have come against spin. Only Stokes (90) and Misbah-ul-Haq (79) have hit more sixes against spinners than Pant in Test cricket. Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir suffered the most. Pant hit nine sixes against each of them followed by seven sixes off Nathan Lyon. He also struck six sixes each against Keshav Maharaj and Ajaz Patel. Pant's sixes against spin come at an even better frequency, once every 27.37 balls. Given his recent six-hitting form, Pant should be able to climb to the top of the six-hitters list in a year or two.