cricket

Updated: Nov 09, 2019 13:17 IST

India stand-in captain Rohit Sharma will be on the verge of achieving a huge milestone in international cricket when he steps out on the field in the 3rd T20I against Bangladesh on Sunday. The right-handed batsman struck six sixes in the 2nd T20I in his 43-ball 85-run innings, as he helped his side to an easy 8-wicket win. Doing so, Rohit took his overall sixes tally across formats to 398 sixes.

In the ODIs so far, Rohit has hammered 232 sixes, while he has struck 51 in Tests. He has slammed 115 sixes in the T20Is so far.

Also read: Momentum with India but Bangladesh can spring another surprise

Now, on Sunday, the 32-year-old needs just two sixes to join elite 400-sixes club in international cricket. So far, the only two players to cross the milestone are former Pakistan batsman Shahid Afridi (476 sixes) and West Indies international Chris Gayle (534 sixes).

After the 2nd T20I, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal asked Rohit the secret behind hitting such massive sixes and in the latest episode of Chahal TV, he provided the spinner with some valuable advice.

“When I hit three consecutive sixes, I tried to go for six maximums. But when I missed the fourth one, I decided I will take singles. You don’t need a huge body and muscles to hit big sixes. Even you (Chahal) can hit sixes. Power is not the only thing you need to hit sixes, you need timing as well. The ball should hit the middle of the bat and your head should be still. So, there are a number of things you need in order to hit a six,” he told Chahal in the video.

Also read: Yuzvendra Chahal 1 wicket away from joining Jasprit Bumrah, R Ashwin in elite T20I list

India will be eyeing their first T20 International series win at home this season when they take on Bangladesh in the decisive third game on Sunday, with the hope that their fringe players contribute significantly to a victory. In the absence of some senior players, including skipper Virat Kohli, India’s primary objective of the T20 series was to identify the core of players for the T20 World Cup next year.