South Africa’s Gibbs Became the First Player to Hit 6 Sixes in an Over in International Cricket

ON THIS DAY IN 2007: On March 16, 2007, former South Africa opener Herschelle Gibbs became the first player ever to hit six maximums in on over when SA took on the Netherlands in the 2007 World Cup in West Indies. Gibbs managed the feat in the 30th over of the match, with Daan van Bunge bowling and in the process, remained the first and only player to do so in a 50-over World Cup tournament so far.

THIS IS HOW THE CARNAGE UNFOLDED:

29.1 — van Bunge bowled a loopy leg-spinner around middle and leg, Gibbs charged down the track and smacked it over long on for a maximum.

29.2 — van Bunge bowled a similar delivery to the first one and once again, Gibbs came down the track to hit it over long-off for a flat six.

29.3 — van Bunge bowled it flat and outside off but enough room for Gibbs to free his arms and this time, he stood and delivered. Hit it flush from the middle of the bat over long off for another maximum.

29.4 — This time van Bunge bowled a flat, low full-toss and Gibbs crunched it over deep midwicket for the fourth six.

29.5 — Van Bunge pulled back the length but landed the ball short on off stump. Gibbs rocked back quickly and slapped it over wide long off.

29.6 — Enough of spin from Van Bunge as he looked to bowl a medium pace delivery but he only managed to bowl it short, Gibbs once again rocked back and pulled it over deep mid-wicket to hit the sixth maximum of the over and set a record.

Gibbs smacked 72 runs off just 40 balls and helped South Africa post 353/3 in just 40 overs in a rain-curtailed match. Chasing that, Netherlands could only muster 132/9 from their quota of 40 overs and lost the match by 221 runs.

Apart from Gibbs, the two other batsmen who have achieved the feat are Yuvraj Singh and Kieron Pollard. Both of them did the same in T20Is against England and Sri Lanka, respectively.

While Yuvraj infamously smashed Stuart Broad all around the park in Durban during the World T20 in 2007, Pollard achieved the feat a few days back of the bowling off Akila Dananjaya in Antigua.

However, in domestic cricket, the feat has been achieved by five other players — West Indies’ Sir Garfield Sobers (in 1968 against Glamorgan), India’s Ravi Shastri (in 1985 against Baroda), England’s Ross Whitely (in 2017 against Yorkshire Vikings), Afghanistan’s Hazratullah Zazai (in 2018 against Balkh Legends) and New Zealand’s Leo Carter (in 2020 against Northern Knights).

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