IPL 2023 breaks record for most sixes hit in single season of cash-rich league

The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been an enthralling season so far. Gujarat Titans (GT), Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), and Mumbai Indians (MI) have all confirmed their playoff qualification with the season nearing its end.

During the last league stage clash between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and GT at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday, May 21, the IPL 2023 season surpassed the record for the most sixes in a single edition. GT's young opener Shubman Gill, scored the 1063rd six of the season in the 70th match of the ongoing edition, breaking the previous record of 1062 sixes set in the 2022 season.

Last Updated - May 21, 2023

The IPL 2009 season, which was contested in South Africa due to the Lok Sabha elections, had witnessed the fewest number of sixes. There were just 506 sixes hit in 59 matches, with a six-per-match ratio of 8.58.

RCB skipper Faf du Plessis is leading the sixes charts in the ongoing season with 36 maximums from 14 matches. The Proteas batter also leads the IPL 2023 Orange Cap list with 730 runs, including eight half-centuries, at an average of 56.15 and a strike rate of 153.68. Meanwhile, with 125 sixes each, Mumbai Indians (MI) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have smashed the most sixes this season.

Gayle holds record of most number of sixes

The record for hitting the most sixes in the lucrative competition is currently held by Chris Gayle, one of the most decorated batters in the history of IPL. The legendary West Indies batter concluded his IPL career with an enormous total of 357 sixes from 141 innings.

Gayle also holds the record for the most sixes struck in a single IPL season- 59 sixes in 2012. Notably, other than Gayle, no other batter has hit even 300 sixes in IPL.

India and Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma is in second place on the sixes chart with 256 maximums. Former RCB batter AB de Villiers, CSK skipper MS Dhoni, and Virat Kohli round up the top five with 251, 239, and 234 sixes, respectively.