Shoaib Malik completes 100 sixes in ODI cricket

Shoaib Malik continues to bear the burden of Pakistan’s middle order as the 335-year-old guided the Pakistan team towards a big total with a well-paced innings during the 1st One-Day International game against Sri Lanka at the Dubai’s International Cricket Stadium on Friday. The veteran batsman struck his 40th fifty in ODI cricket as he scored 81 off just 61 balls with the help of five fours and two sixes.

Pakistan were 124/4 in 28 overs when Malik walked out to be bat after Sri Lanka invited them to bat first. He shared a 139-run stand in 19 overs along with Babar Azam for the 4th wicket before holing out in the deep off Suranga Lakmal’s bowling. With the first off the two sixes in the game, Malik completed 100 sixes in the ODI format. Thus, he became only the 5th Pakistan player and the 32nd overall to hit 100 sixes in ODI cricket.

Malik, who was playing in his 253rd ODI, has hit 101 sixes and 563 fours so far in the 229 innings he has batted. He has scored 6846 runs in his career so far, the 8th highest for a Pakistan player. Shahid Afridi leads the overall sixes list in this format with 351 maximums, standing as the only player to hit 300 ODI sixes.

Pakistan players with 100 sixes in ODI cricket:

(Includes the numbers for Asia Xi and World Xi)

However, by taking 229 innings, Malik stands among the slowest to complete 100 sixes in this format. He is the joint 5th slowest to complete 100 ODI sixes as only four players of the 32 players with 100 ODI sixes took more than 229 innings to complete the milestone. Pakistan’s Inzamam-ul-Haq (246) and Wasim Akram (233) are among those four players. Only nine players needed more than 200 innings to hit their 100th six in this format.

Most innings needed for completing 100 sixes in ODI cricket:

(Stats as on October 13, 2017)