Abhishek Sharma sets T20I record for most first‑ball sixes as India chase 226 in Christchurch

Abhishek Sharma became the first player in T20 International history to hit the very first delivery he faced for a six seven times, doing so in the opening match of India’s 2026 tour of New Zealand. The record came as India chased a daunting 226 runs set by the hosts in Christchurch.

Match overview

• Venue: Hagley Oval, Christchurch, New Zealand
• Date: Thursday, 2026 (exact date as reported)
• Result: New Zealand 225/8; India 128/4 after 11 overs (match still in progress at time of reporting)
• Format: Twenty‑20 International (T20I)
• Time‑zone: New Zealand Standard Time (NZST)

Record details

• Sharma’s first‑ball six came off the final delivery of the opening over bowled by Matt Henry.
• It was his seventh first‑ball six in T20Is, overtaking Afghanistan’s Shafiqullah Shinwari (six) and placing Sharma ahead of India’s Suryakumar Yadav (five).
• Current leaderboard for first‑ball sixes in T20Is
• 7 – Abhishek Sharma (India)
• 6 – Shafiqullah Shinwari (Afghanistan)
• 5 – Suryakumar Yadav (India)
• 4 – Paul Stirling (Ireland), Colin Munro (New Zealand), Mohammad Naveed (UAE)

Opening partnership milestone

• Sharma and Sanju Samson put together 93 runs for the first wicket in 5.5 overs.
• The stand marked the fifth 50‑plus opening partnership for India in a calendar year (2026), equalling the record set by KL Rahul & Rohit Sharma (2021) and Abhishek Sharma & Shubman Gill (2025).
• Other Indian opening pairs with five 50+ stands in a year
• KL Rahul & Rohit Sharma – 5 (2021)
• Abhishek Sharma & Shubman Gill – 5 (2025)
• Abhishek Sharma & Sanju Samson – 5 (2026)
• Shikhar Dhawan & Rohit Sharma – 4 (2018)

New Zealand’s batting display

• Finn Allen (45 off 24) and Glenn Phillips ( unbeaten 82 off 40) anchored the total of 225/8, the joint‑highest score against India in T20Is and New Zealand’s highest on home soil.
• The hosts added 67 runs in the final five overs, exploiting the absence of Jasprit Bumrah from the Indian squad.

India’s bowling challenges

• Most expensive bowler: Axar Patel – 1/51 in 4 overs.
• Five Indian bowlers (Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 1/49, Arshdeep Singh 1/45, Mayank Yadav 0/40, Nitish Reddy 0/40) conceded 40 or more runs, a first‑time occurrence for India in a T20I and the 13th such instance in men’s T20Is overall.
• The lack of a specialist death‑over bowler was evident as New Zealand accelerated in the death overs.

Practical implications & verification

• For fans: The record highlights Sharma’s aggressive intent at the top of the order, suggesting India may rely on quick starts in future chases.
• For analysts: The bowling figures underline the need for a more economical death‑over option when Bumrah is unavailable.
• How to verify: The official match scorecard is available on the International Cricket Council (ICC) website and on the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) live‑score portal. The record for first‑ball sixes is tracked by ESPNcricinfo’s statistical database.

--- *All figures are taken from the match report published by *The Times of India* and reflect the situation at the time of writing.*