Riyan Parag Makes IPL History with Six Consecutive Sixes

Riyan Parag's Historic Achievement in IPL

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], May 4: Riyan Parag, the captain of Rajasthan Royals (RR), has etched his name in the record books by becoming the first player to hit six consecutive sixes in the Indian Premier League (IPL), surpassing cricket legends like Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard.

This remarkable feat occurred during a match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens. Chasing a target of 207 runs, RR found themselves struggling at 8/2. However, Parag's partnership of 92 runs with Shimron Hetmyer, after the team was reduced to 71/5, provided a glimmer of hope. Parag scored an explosive 95 runs off just 45 balls, featuring six fours and eight sixes, with an impressive strike rate of 211.11.

In the 13th over, Parag faced Moeen Ali and hit six consecutive sixes, showcasing his power hitting. Following a single taken by Hetmyer in the 14th over, Parag returned to strike and executed a reverse hit over deep backward point for his sixth six on the sixth consecutive delivery he faced.

With this achievement, he has outperformed other players like Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Rahul Tewatia, Ravindra Jadeja, and Rinku Singh, who have all managed five sixes in five balls.

This season, Riyan Parag stands as RR's second-highest run-scorer and ranks 11th overall, accumulating 377 runs in 12 matches with an average of 37.70 and a strike rate of 170.58, including one half-century.

In the match, KKR won the toss and chose to bat first. After an early wicket, a solid partnership between skipper Rahane and Gurbaz (who scored 35 off 25 balls) stabilized the innings. A crucial 61-run partnership for the fourth wicket between Angkrish Raghuvanshi (44 off 31 balls) and Andre Russell (57* off 25 balls) propelled KKR to a total of 206/4 in their 20 overs.

Jofra Archer, Yudhvir Singh, Riyan Parag, and Maheesh Theekshana each took a wicket for RR.

During the chase, despite RR's early struggles at 71/5, the partnership between Riyan Parag (95 off 45 balls) and Shimron Hetmyer (29 off 23 balls) gave them a fighting chance. However, despite contributions from Shubham Dubey (25* off 14 balls) and Jofra Archer (12 off 8 balls), RR fell just short, finishing at 205/8.

Varun Chakravarthy (2/32), Harshit Rana (2/41), and Moeen Ali (2/43) were the standout bowlers for KKR.