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New Zealand all-rounder Tim Southee is not only scripting bowling milestones, but he’s also creating new ones with the bat. Southee is steadily climbing up the batting charts when it comes to six-hitting in Test cricket. He was on fire on day five of the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against India as the 32-year old cricketer smashed two sixes in his 30-run knock in the WTC Final at the Ageas Bowl, Southampton on Tuesday.
Southee, who is known for hitting big sixes in Tests, hit two massive ones against India in the first innings of the New Zealand innings in the WTC final. He first lodged Ishant Sharma’s ball straight over the pacer’s head, before slapping another one into the mid-wicket stand off Ravindra Jadeja, which helped the Kiwis take a crucial 32-run lead.
But before getting out for a 46-ball 30 and with those two mighty hits, Southee moved past former Australian captain Ricky Ponting on the list of most Test sixes. The Kiwi all-rounder now has 75 sixes from 79 Test matches and is also onthe 15th spot on the list of batsmen with most sixes in the longest format of the game. Notably, the pacer is also on the cusp of breaking former Indian skipper MS Dhoni’s record as well. Dhoni had scored 78 sixes in 90 Test matches.
Southee is third on the list of Kiwi players with the most sixes, which is headed by Southee’s former captain Brendan McCullum, who hit 107 sixes in his 101-match career, while Chris Cairns has 87 in 62 matches.
This is a huge achievement for a cricketer recognised for his bowling and not batting skills in the longest format of the game. But after Tuesday’s milestone, Southee has more sixes in Test cricket history than Ponting, Sachin Tendulkar, AB de Villiers, Clive Lloyd, Ian Botham and many more established batsmen of the sport.
Meanwhile, Southee also scalped his 600th wicket in International cricket (overall) when he picked Indian opener Shubman Gill with a plumb in front of the wickets. Additionally, his crucial cameo helped the Kane Williamson-led side to breach India’s 217 runs. New Zealand were bundled out for 249 runs in their first innings and thus got a lead of 32 runs. Currently India lead by 32 runs.
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