Science Behind Hitting A Six In Cricket

Hitting a six in cricket holds the most runs that batsmen can score on one legal ball by the bat. Hitting maximums is not just about having sheer power to pull the ball outside the boundary fences, it requires a lot of practice, hard work, and precision which makes it possible for a batter to add 6 runs on the board. Let’s dive deep into the process of hitting a six in cricket.

Elements of hitting a six

• Hitting the ball from the sweet spot of the bat
• Hitting the ball at the right timing
• The bat swing of the batsman
• Weight transfer while hitting maximums
• Maintaining the stance
• Keeping the head stable
• Hitting the ball below the head

Science behind hitting a six, how athletes hit such mammoth maximums

For hitting a six, a batsman requires all the elements mentioned above for the implementation of the shot. Most of the hits also depend upon the kind of pitch where the match is played. For instance- if a match is being played on a dry pitch like in Asian countries, spinners are the kings on those pitches and to implement a six on that spinning track batsmen play with the spin shots mostly for a six like Kieron Pollard.

For a right-arm off-spin delivery, the usual shot played is a slog sweep toward the mid-wicket or cow corner region whereas while tackling a leg-spinner the batsman plays over the covers region hitting an inside-out.

In the case of flat pitches or green wickets where pacers can get an edge as well. a batsman needs to maintain an upright posture for tackling the bounce of the ball and time it at the right with the right spot to implement an effortless six like Rohit Sharma and Rickey Ponting’s pull shot.

The ball comes with a great amount of speed toward the batsmen which is enough for him/her to judge the pitching length, if it’s above the good length then a batsman can go for the straight bat shots or flicks whereas if the pitching is besides good length then he can adjust the high weight on the backfoot to hit the ball on the merit towards fine or square lef via pull shot and uppercut or cut shot in case of an off-side delivery.

Shots played for hitting a six

Off-side:

• Upper Cut
• Inside Out
• Square Cut
• Inside Out
• Lofted Straight Drive
• Lofted Cover Drive

Leg-side:

• Leg Glance
• Sweep
• Slog Sweep
• Pull Shot
• Flick
• Pick-up Shot

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