The T-20 format of cricket cannot be imagined without power hitters. Power hitters not only provide full enjoyment to cricket enthusiasts but also make the task for the team’s bowlers easier by scoring a big total. The more power hitters the stronger the team will be. In the last several years, there has been a galaxy of power hitters from Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya to Rishabh Pant. All they have converted the matches into a thrilling event.
Last year, if Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Sanju Samson made their centuries in less than 60 balls, it is clear that cricketers are adapting themselves to what the format like T-20 demands.
Particularly, this can be said about Rahane and Sanju Samson. Rahane was once unable to ensure his place in One Dayers even during the past few years. But now he has made an impact in IPL on the last several occasions.
England’s opener Jonny Bairstow won huge applause by completing a century in just 52 balls. As regards fastest half centuries, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant and K.L. Rahul have hit blistering fifties off less than 20 balls in the last season.
Definitely, IPL gives Indian players an opportunity to adapt themselves to the game of T-20 format. Technique used by the cricketers in these games hardly matters. Therefore, different kinds of strokes, from non- traditional ones to Dilscoop shots, are seen in IPL. If Andre Russell plays with bat at the strike rate of 204.81 in the entire season, then it makes a positive impact on his KKR team. If last year, Hardik Pandya gets ahead of all the IPL players after Russel in terms of strike rate, then it kindles Team India’s hope for future.
If Rishabh Pant scores at the average of 162.66, it means he could be useful in the T-20 world cup for Team India even in the absence of M.S. Dhoni. What is needed is the efforts to boost his morale and to make him aware of his wicket’s importance. Chrys Gayle is an undisputed sixer king of the IPL. He has hit the highest number 326 sixers. He is followed by A.B, de Villiers, M.S. Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli. These players’ huge and long sixers have held the cricket enthusiasts spellbound.
Who can forget Dhoni’s 111-metre long sixer in the last season. The second longest sixer (104 metre) is that of Hardik Pandya. It is a big deal to make 20 to 25 and 25 to 30 runs in one over in any format of cricket, but players have been scoring runs like this in the death overs in IPL.
Cricket lovers cannot forget the final played in Johannesburg in 2009 where Rohit Sharma had hit two sixers and as many fours in the last over of Mashrafe Mortaza. Similarly, Rohit had also hit three sixers and two fours in the innings’ last over of David Hussey of Kings. Likewise, Dhoni has also turned the match in favour of CSK by brutalising Irfan Pathan and Axar Patel. Franklin hit four sixes in an over of Balaji, and Hardik Pandya scored 29 runs in an over of Ashok Dinda with four sixers and one four.
In an over, Russell also treated Team Saudi in the similar fashion. That is not all. Who can forget Gayle’s innings of 175 runs off 66 balls in which he had hit 17 sixers. In the first match of IPL 2008, Brendon McCullum’s innings of 158 runs off 73 balls cannot be forgotten easily. MCcullam, Gayle and Russell have won the hearts of spectators in IPL by virtue of their brutal and explosive knocks.
In this season of IPL also, cricket- lovers are eagerly waiting for huge and long sixers of Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Kartik, Rohit Sharma, Sam Curran, Sunil Narine, Moeen Ali and David Warner. Interestingly, explosive power hitters such as Aaron and Tom Banton have also joined the IPL this time round. One can hope that all the three stadiums of UAE will now have spectacles of massive and explosive power hitting.