May 22 was yet another evening that belonged to Abhishek Sharma. The Sunrisers Hyderabad opener walked out to bat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru and did what he does best, hit the ball harder and further than almost anyone else on the planet. But beyond the entertainment, his knock carried a weight that went far beyond the scorecard, placing him in a bracket occupied by just one other batter in the entire history of the game.
The Knock That Rewrote the Record Books
Abhishek wasted no time making his presence felt, dismantling the RCB bowling attack to finish with 56 runs off just 22 deliveries. His innings was built on four crisp boundaries and five enormous sixes, and it was those five maximums that carried the real historical significance. They pushed his six-hitting tally for the ongoing IPL 2026 season to 43 across 14 appearances, and in doing so,
triggered a milestone nobody in Indian cricket had ever reached before.
The 25-year-old left-hander became the first Indian cricketer and only the second player anywhere in the world to hammer 40 or more sixes across multiple editions of a T20 series or tournament. The achievement is a reflection not just of his power but of his extraordinary consistency as one of franchise cricket’s most destructive openers.
Joining Gayle in an Exclusive Club
The only name that sits alongside Abhishek in this rarefied space is that of West Indian batting icon Chris Gayle, a player widely regarded as the greatest six-hitter the format has ever produced. Gayle crossed the 40-sixes mark on four separate occasions during his legendary stints in franchise cricket around the world. Playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, he launched a jaw-dropping 59 sixes in IPL 2012, followed by 51 in IPL 2013 and 41 in IPL 2011. Beyond the IPL, he further cemented his global dominance by clearing the rope 47 times for the Rangpur Riders in the 2017 Bangladesh Premier League.
Abhishek had first entered this territory during his breakout 2024 campaign with the Hyderabad franchise, when he struck 42 sixes across 16 matches. By crossing 40 sixes again in 2026 and pushing his tally to 43, he has not only repeated the feat but surpassed his own personal best in the process, rewriting his individual single-season record along the way.
Sooryavanshi Eyes Gayle’s All-Time Mark
While Abhishek’s achievement stands as one of the most remarkable of IPL 2026, he does not hold the record for the highest six count by an Indian batter in a single T20 season. That honour belongs to a 15-year-old from Bihar who has turned the entire tournament on its head. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, donning the Rajasthan Royals jersey, has been an phenomenon beyond imagination this season, launching a staggering 53 sixes in just 13 matches to leave the cricketing world speechless.
More remarkably, Sooryavanshi now stands within touching distance of the greatest individual power-hitting record in T20 history. If the teenage left-handed prodigy clears the boundary at least seven more times during the Royals’ final league fixture against Mumbai Indians on Sunday, May 24, at the iconic Wankhede Stadium, he will officially shatter Chris Gayle’s long-standing world record for the most sixes struck in a single T20 series or tournament, a record that has towered over the game for well over a decade.
