Quetta Gladiators batter Iftikhar Ahmed left nothing in the tank on Sunday (February 5) as he smoked pacer Wahab Riaz for six sixes in an over in an exhibition match between Gladiators and Peshawar Zalmi. Wahab, who's also the caretaker Sports Minister of Punjab province of Pakistan, did not had a good outing in Sunday's PSL exhibition match.
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— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) February 5, 2023
Iftikhar goes big in the final over of the innings!
Watch Live https://t.co/xOrGZzkfvl pic.twitter.com/CDSMFoayoZ
Earlier, Riaz gave his team a dream start by getting the better of Umar Akmal and Ahsan Ali in the second over but Iftikhar had other plans. The left-hander was in fine touch as he finished at an unbeaten score of 94 runs off 50 balls.
Iftikhar's heroics helped his side add plenty of valuable runs to the scoreboard. At the start of the final over, Quetta was 148/5 and they reached 184/5 in 20 overs. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also acknowledged his heroics on their Twitter. In 204 matches and 186 innings in T20 cricket, he has scored 3,956 runs at an average of 29.08 and a strike rate of 127.24. He has one century and 25 fifties to his name in the format, with the best score of 100*.
Before him, ten players have accomplished the feat of hitting six sixes in an over.
West Indies all-rounder Gary Sobers was the first-ever batter to accomplish this feat, during a County Championship match in 1968 for his side Nottinghamshire against Glamorgan. (ALSO READ: Asia Cup 2023: Pakistan Cricket Board Breaks Silence on Hosting Rights Controversy, say THIS)
17 years later in a Ranji Trophy match for Bombay against Baroda, Ravi Shastri replicated this feat for Bombay. South African batter Herschelle Gibbs (against the Netherlands in 2007 Cricket World Cup) and Indian all-rounder legend Yuvraj Singh (against England in T20 World Cup 2007) were the first two players to hit six sixes in an over internationally.
England`s Ross Whitley (For Worcestershire Rapid in T20 Blast 2017) and Afghanistan batter Hazratullah Zazai (For Kabul Zwanan against Balkh Legends in Afghanistan Premier League 2018) repeated the feat in late 2010s. In 2020s, New Zealand batter Leo Carter (For Canterbury Kings against Northern Knights in Super Smash 2020) once again hit sixes at the club level. In 2021, West Indies legend Kieron Pollard became the third batter to smash six sixes in an over, during a T20I match against Sri Lanka.
In the same year, while playing for Sri Lanka Army Sports CC, SL batter Thisara Perera smashed six sixes in an over against Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club during the Major Clubs Limited Over List A Tournament. USA`s Jaskaran Malhotra became the fourth international player to smash six sixes in an over against Papua New Guinea in 2021. (With ANI inputs)
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