Indian opening batsman Abhishek Sharma has stamped his authority on international T20 cricket once again by setting a benchmark that stands unmatched across the global game. During the second T20 international encounter against New Zealand, Sharma produced a decisive moment of history despite being dismissed for 27 runs. His quick knock proved sufficient to etch his name into the record books on multiple fronts.
A Landmark Century of Sixes in the Opening Overs
Sharma has officially become the first cricketer in T20 international history to register 100 sixes exclusively within the mandatory powerplay. Having already surpassed former Indian skipper Rohit Sharma in the opening fixture of the New Zealand series, he needed just a single maximum in the second match to hit the triple-figure milestone. Over the course of 69 T20 internationals, Sharma has struck an aggregate of 147 sixes, with an astounding 100 of those arriving inside the first six overs.
Top Powerplay Maximum Hitters in T20 Internationals
The global tally for the most sixes hit during the first six overs of T20 internationals highlights elite company
- Abhishek Sharma (India): 100 sixes
- Rohit Sharma (India): 98 sixes
- Martin Guptill (New Zealand): 97 sixes
- Paul Stirling (Ireland): 94 sixes
- Quinton de Kock (South Africa): 87 sixes
First Indian Opener with 1,000 T20I Runs in a Single Year
Beyond his boundary-hitting milestone, the 27-run contribution against New Zealand lifted Sharma beyond the 1,000-run mark as an opener in the calendar year 2026. This feat makes him the first Indian opening batsman to amass 1,000 T20 international runs in a single calendar year. He is also only the third Indian batter overall to breach the 1,000-run barrier in a calendar year, following Suryakumar Yadav who tallied 1164 runs in 2022, and Ishan Kishan who has scored 1159 runs so far in 2026.
