14 Hardest Hitters of the Cricket Ball

14 Hardest Hitters of the Cricket Ball: Cricket is now fast turning into a batsmen’s game with the rules in favour of the batsmen and with more and more batting friendly pitches being laid. There is a hell lot of pressure to handle for a bowler these days as there seems to be no margin for error. If you miss your line, you are sure to get whacked. With T20 cricket coming up, along with the emergence of the IPL and Big Bash along with other leagues around the world it has almost become an inevitable prerequisite for the batsmen to bat aggressively and try and hit the ball as hard as they can. World cricket has seen a lot of powerful hitters and merciless strikers of the cricket ball over the years. Here is our list of Top 14 Hardest Hitters of the Cricket Ball. 1. Chris Gayle: Chris Gayle RCB. (Photo Source: BCCI) The limited overs specialist, the implacable marauder from West Indies Chris Gayle is one of the most feared batsmen in world cricket. He is a player who doesn’t run the ones and two’s but relies solely on hitting humongous sixes to score his runs. He hits the ball unbelievably hard with tremendous power and clobbers the sixes around the ground with ease. The bowlers have their heart in their mouth, when delivering the ball to Gayle, because if you miss your line by and inch he will make you pay for it, with his morale dipping treatment. 2. Sir Vivian Richards: Sir Viv Richards. (Photo Source: Getty Images) The West Indian legend is one of a kind, known for his ruthless batting style. Sir Vivian Richards was an intimidating factor for the opposition bowlers who dread the prospect of having to bowl against him. Back in his days, when batting had a more conservative approach; Viv was uniquely the only one who batted with a contrasting aggressive mindset and fearless batting. He is one of the hardest hitters of the ball and he played a range of shots including the hook and the pull. Sir Viv Richards is ranked as one of the greatest batsmen of all time by Wisden. 3. MS Dhoni: MS Dhoni CSK. (Photo Source: BCCI) The Indian captain is known for his aggressive and unorthodox power hitting and can be very demoralizing for the bowlers. Dhoni can clear the boundary with relative ease. He possesses an incredible bat speed and relies heavily on his wrists to generate the power that he does for his shots. Dhoni owns a patent for the famous helicopter shot, which is one of his most complex and difficult to hit shots. He is regarded as the best finisher in world cricket. 4. Kieron Pollard: Kieron Pollard MI. (Photo Source: BCCI) This West Indian is yet another incredible striker of the cricket ball and the IPL is an incontestable testimony for it. Kieron Pollard has unbelievable bat speed, along with the impact his strong bottom hand has, can clear the rope at will. He can dispatch even the good deliveries for sixes and sometimes even his miss-timed shots go the distance. Pollard adds value to his side with the runs he scores in the end over’s and at lightning pace. 5. Yusuf Pathan: Yusuf Pathan kkr. (Photo Source: BCCI) The muscle man from Baroda is yet another powerful striker of the cricket ball. Yusuf Pathan can traumatize the opposition bowlers with his stroke play. Pathan’s 100 off 37 balls in the IPL was an irrefutable evidence for his power hitting. It was regarded as the best T20 innings by spin wizard Shane Warne. 6. David Miller: David Miller KXIP. (Photo Source: BCCI) The South African batsman is one of the most ruthless power hitters in the game. David Miller can pummel the ball for huge sixes with no trouble whatsoever. He is nicknamed Miller the Killer for his aggressive batting style and is an attribute for his power hitting. 7. Darren Sammy: Darren Sammy. (Photo Source: WICB) The former West Indian captain is another batsman who relies solely on brute strength and can dismiss the ball from his presence if any delivery is there to be hit in his zone. Darren Sammy is one of the best finishers for West Indies and can take the game away from the opposition in real quick time. 8. Mathew Hayden: Matthew Hayden CSK. (© Getty Images) The big Australian is a two time world cup winner and was one of the powerful strikers of world cricket in his time. Mathew Hayden is known as a big match player and with his power hitting he is a very difficult batsman to bowl to. Haydos has a triple century in test cricket too which proves that power hitters can excel in the longest format of the game as well. 9. Brendon McCullum: Brendon McCullum. (© Getty Images) The Kiwi batsman is known for the incredible bat speed that he generates and for the brute force with which Brendon McCullum clobbers the deliveries for sixes. He is a tough player to contain and once he gets set, can prove to be unstoppable. McCullum’s 158 in the first match of the first ever match substantiates the claim. 10. Shahid Afridi: Boom Boom Shahid Afridi. (©Getty Images) Nicknamed ‘Boom Boom’ Afridi for the force with which he hits the ball; Shahid Afridi is one of the most fearless batters of his generation. He at one point held the record for the fastest ever century. Afridi can be a very dangerous player when he is in form. He has a huge fan following in Pakistan and fans continue to cherish the memories of the characteristic knocks he hit. 11. Dwayne Smith: Dwayne Smith CSK. (Photo Source: BCCI) Dwayne Smith is another power house player from the West Indies, someone who relies more on power than any other aspect, Smith dispatches the loose deliveries with supreme force. He is an incredible stroke maker and can be a match winner in T20’s and an impact player even in 50 over’s cricket. 12. Andrew Symonds: Andrew Symonds. (Photo Source: Indian Premier League) The former Aussie middle order batsman is one of the clearest strikers of the cricket ball. Andrew Symonds is known for his power hitting and has won a lot of games for his side. He was not only part of the Australian world cup winning team, but an important one. Symonds right throughout his career was a very difficult player to bowl to and relished batting towards the end of the innings. 13. AB de Villiers: AB de Villiers RCB. (Photo Source: BCCI) It is impossible to talk about the Hard Hitters and not consider this man AB de Villiers. So much has been said and written about him in very little time that, it is really difficult to describe him in a better way now. Cutting short to the points, – AB is the best batsman in the world today. – No matter how good a bowler you are he will find ways to hit you out of the park. – AB de has redefined the use of the crease and angles with which batsmen played. There is more to discover in this man, as he continues to astonish the world with his skills, innovation, improvisation and assault every time that he takes guard. 14. Sanath Jayasuriya: Sanath Jayasuriya MI. (© Getty Images) Very few in the game could even think of it when Sanath Jayasuriya opened new horizons of striking to opening batting. Conventionally it was about seeing off the new ball and the first spell from the fast bowlers; once Jayasuriya walked in for Sri Lanka, he changed the perspectives forever. He was someone who waited on for the bowlers to slip in something with slightest of the width, smashed, thrashed and bashed them for the tons and tons of runs that he scored in ODI and test cricket. One of the finest Opening batsmen and probably the best Sri Lankan opener Sanath Jayasuriya carried a legacy of his own.

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