During a Ranji Trophy Plate Group match against Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday, Meghalaya’s Akash Kumar Choudhary became the first player in first-class cricket history to smash eight consecutive sixes. He also recorded the fastest half-century in the format, off just 11 deliveries.
On the second day of the match at the C K Pithawala Ground in Surat, 25-year-old Choudhary, batting at No. 8, achieved the amazing feat. He helped Meghalaya declare their first innings at a massive 628 for 6 while remaining undefeated on 50 off 14 balls.
Choudhary shattered the record of Wayne White of Leicestershire who had previously set the fastest fifty record in first-class cricket off 12 deliveries against Essex in 2012.
He also became the third player in first-class cricket history to hit six consecutive sixes, following the legendary Sir Garfield Sobers of the West Indies and India’s Ravi Shastri.
Meghalaya cruised at 576/6 as Choudhary achieved the feat. The right-handed batsman smashed the next eight deliveries for sixes after beginning his innings with a dot and two singles. He sent all of the deliveries of the 126th over from Limar Dabi flying over the ropes.
Choudhary had only two fifties in 30 games, including this year’s Duleep Trophy for the North East Zone, and an average of 14.37 prior to Sunday’s encounter. In addition, he has participated in 20 T20 matches and 28 List-A games.
When Sobers blasted Malcolm Nash during a County match between Nottinghamshire and Glamorgan in August 1968, he became the first player to record six sixes in an over.
When playing for Bombay against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy 1984–85 match at the Wankhede Stadium, former India all-rounder and head coach Shastri hit six consecutive sixes off Tilak Raj.
Arunachal Pradesh was dismissed for just 73 in their first innings in response to Meghalaya’s 628/6 declared, and after following on, they were suffering once more at 29/3, trailing by a staggering 526 runs.
