Kieron Pollard has become the first West Indian and third player ever to hit six sixes in one over in international cricket.
The veteran all-rounder achieved the historic feat when he took Sri Lankan leg-spinner Akila Dananjaya for 36 in one over in the West Indies’ T20 win on Wednesday.
Dananajya experienced the precipitous highs and lows of T20 cricket when he claimed a hat-trick which included the wicket of West Indies star Chris Gayle for a first-ball duck, before being brutalised by Pollard in the first international in Antigua.
The West Indies won the match by four wickets with 41 balls in hand, finishing with 134-6.
Dananjaya became only the 15th player and the fourth Sri Lankan to take a T20 international hat-trick when he dismissed Evin Lewis (28), Gayle and Nicholas Pooran (0) with consecutive deliveries in the fourth over.
But he had little time to reflect on his new-found fame when it turned to notoriety.
In his next over he was hit to all parts of the ground by Pollard, who become only the second player after Yuvraj Singh to hit six sixes in an over in a T20 international and the third player to achieve the feat in all international formats.
Yuvraj did so from England’s Stuart Broad in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007 and had to wait 14 years for company.
South African great Herschelle Gibbs also achieved at the 2007 World Cup against the Netherlands.
Pollard said he thought six sixes was a possibility “after the third one.”
“I just had to come out and back myself,” he said.
“It was something the team needed. I didn’t see the hat trick, I only heard.
“But I still had to come out and do what the team required at that point in time.”
West Indies take 1-0 lead in T20 series
Dananjaya’s see-sawing fortunes — he was hit for a seventh consecutive six by Jason Holder in his next over and had two catches dropped from his bowling - turned the West Indies’ seemingly easy chase for 132 to take a 1-0 lead in the series into a thrilling spectacle.
Sri Lanka managed only 131-9 in its 20 overs after being sent in to bat.
They had been 86-3 but fell apart after a short rain break and lost six wickets for 45 runs.
Captain Angelo Mathews (5) fell in the first over after play resumed and Dinesh Chandimal (11) was out three balls later.
Thisara Perera (1) fell in the 17th over and Sri Lanka slumped further to 106-6, then 111-7 when Hasaranga de Silva was out for 12.
Two runouts in the final over saw Sri Lanka fall well short of a competitive total.
-Agencies
