Which Test match had the most sixes in history?

Test matches in opposition to white-ball cricket are hardly known for six-hitting. Recently, England under the coaching of Brendon McCullum and the leadership of Ben Stokes has changed how people perceive test cricket. The term ‘Bazball’ has changed test cricket. The English players approach test cricket with an aggressive brand of cricket not just with the bat in hand but with the ball and field placements. But do you which test match had the most sixes in history? 

India vs South Africa, 2019

The first test match of South Africa’s tour of India had the most sixes in a test match. Both teams combined smashed 37 sixes. It was a run-fest at Visakhapatnam as close to 1500 runs were scored in the test match. 

Mayank Agarwal and Rohit Sharma score big for India

After winning the toss, Virat Kohli opted to bat first. The opening duo shared a 317-run partnership. Rohit Sharma scored 176 runs narrowly missing out on a double century while Mayank Agarwal reached the double century mark and scored 215 runs. This was also the first time Rohit opened the innings in test cricket. Both of them scored an identical amount of boundaries. The openers smashed 23 fours and 6 sixes each. Ravindra Jadeja scored the 13th and final six of the innings as other batters failed to convert their starts. India scored a mammoth total of 502 runs in the first innings.

South Africa reply in style

South Africa replied in style with the current skipper and opener, Dean Elgar scoring 160 runs. He smashed 4 sixes and 18 fours. Elgar received very little support from the other end as South Africa lost four wickets with just 63 runs on the board. The South African skipper of that time, Faf du Plessis scored a half-century and hit 1 six. Wicketkeeper, Quinton de Kock also scored a century hitting only 2 sixes. The Proteas scored 431 runs and trailed India by 71 runs after the second innings.

Indian batters took the aggressive route

With over three days played, it was India’s turn to bat once again. The Indian batters knew that they had to take an aggressive route to salvage a result from this game. Opener Rohit Sharma once again showed his class by smashing another century in the match. Rohit scored 127 runs in just 149 balls smashing 10 fours and 7 sixes. Even Cheteshwar Pujara who is known for his defensive style of playing also hit a knock of 81 runs comprising of 2 sixes.

Ravindra Jadeja was promoted in the batting order and scored 40 runs in 32 balls hitting 3 sixes. Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane scored 31 and 27 respectively and scored 1 six each. The hosts scored 323 runs in just 67 overs setting the visitors a target of 395 runs.

India defeats South Africa by 203 runs

Aiden Markam scored 39 runs hitting 5 fours and a single six. Four batters were dismissed for ducks. Number 10 batter, Dane Piedt was the only South African who managed to score a half-century. Piedt scored 56 runs and hit 1 six. Kagiso Rabada batting at number 11 also hit a six in his knock of 18 runs. South Africa was bundled out for just 191 runs inside the 64th over as Mohammed Shami and Jadeja took a 5-wicket haul and 4-wicket haul respectively in the fourth innings. 

Conclusion

The first Test match of South Africa’s tour of India in 2019 was a memorable match for many reasons. It was a run-fest, with close to 1500 runs scored in the match. But what made this match even more special was the fact that it had the most sixes in a Test match in history, with both teams combining to hit 37 sixes.

Rohit Sharma was awarded with the Player of the Match award for scoring centuries in both innings and hitting 13 sixes in total. Ravindra Jadeja smashed 4 sixes in the match while Mayank Agarwal hit 6 sixes in the first innings. For South Africa, Dean Elgar was the highest six hitter with 4 sixes in the first innings.