In ODI cricket, the best time for the batters to bat is the powerplay phase or the first 10 overs of their innings. This is because the surfaces for the modern ODI game offer little to the bowlers except the first few overs, barring a few instances, and hence the powerplay phase becomes an opportune moment for the openers to give their sides a sound start.
Normally, we see a lot of boundary fours in this phase, as there will be vacant spaces for the batters to work with, but there are some openers who take over the top approach and smash sixes in the powerplay. Here are the top 10 batters with the most sixes in the first 10 powerplay overs in ODIs.
Most Sixes by a Batter in Powerplay in ODI
| Player | Innings | 6s in Powerplays | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rohit Sharma (IND) | 195 | 130 | 81.75 |
| Chris Gayle (WI) | 73 | 78 | 94.16 |
| Martin Guptill (NZ) | 155 | 75 | 82.31 |
| David Warner (AUS) | 148 | 51 | 92.32 |
| Brendon McCullum (NZ) | 54 | 43 | 131.32 |
| Paul Stirling (IRE) | 79 | 39 | 87.05 |
| Quinton de Kock (SA) | 155 | 39 | 88.11 |
| Aaron Finch (AUS) | 137 | 33 | 80.64 |
| Travis Head (AUS) | 53 | 31 | 115.80 |
| Evin Lewis (WI) | 66 | 31 | 79.58 |
Key Stats on Batters with Most Sixes in ODI Powerplay Overs
1: Rohit Sharma leads the way with the most number of maximums in the first 10 powerplay overs of an ODI game. And he is the only one with 100+ sixes in the mentioned phase. Sharma has also hit the most number of sixes in powerplay in T20Is.
131.32: This is the highest strike rate by a batter in the first 10 mandatory powerplay overs in ODIs. This record belongs to former New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum, who played an attacking brand of cricket during his playing days. The next best strike rate is by the current England opener, Jonny Bairstow, who has hit over 25 maximums.
4: Only 4 batters have hit 50 or more sixes in the first powerplay phase in ODIs. Openers Chris Gayle, David Warner, and Martin Guptill are the other batsmen to have hit more than 50 maximums.
Overall, as openers, Chris Gayle and Rohit Sharma shares the most sixes record.
48.90: This is the best average of a batter on this list, and Jonny Bairstow holds this record. Next up is Quinton de Kock (47.90) of South Africa.
84: Rohit Sharma has been dismissed the most times in the powerplays, and he is followed by Martin Guptill (78) and David Warner (77) and Shikhar Dhawan, who also has 73 outs inside the first 10 overs.
