Jaskaran Malhotra became the fifth individual in the history of cricket to hit six sixes in one over as the United States of America won the ODI against Papua New Guinea but Malhotra’s knock was simply sublime.
Follow Us
Sir Gary Sobers, Ravi Shastri, Herschelle Gibbs, Yuvraj Singh, and now Jaskaran Singh. The common thread that joins all these players is the feat of hitting six sixes in one over. Gary Sobers achieved the feat in 1968 while Ravi Shastri did it in 1986. In the modern era, Herschelle Gibbs and Yuvraj Singh achieved it in the World Cups of 2007. While Gibbs did it in the 2007 World Cup in West Indies, Yuvraj did it against England in the World T20 match in Durban.
But now, a fifth individual has joined the elite list. In the match on September 9 between USA and Papua New Guinea, Jaskaran Malhotra created history. Coming into bat at No.5, Malhotra had to rescue a USA team that was struggling to get to a big score against Papua New Guinea at Al Amerat ground in Muscat, Oman. Malhotra reached his century but USA was still 196/8 in the 46th over. On the last ball, he hit a six. That began the carnage and Papua New Guinea never recovered.
Jaskaran Singh set the tone with two boundaries in the 47th over but the USA lost Jessy Singh for 6. But, Saurabh Netrawalkar joined Jaskaran and the pair set records galore. Jaskaran hit another six as they continued the recovery. Heading into the final over, the USA were 235/9. Gaudi Toka came onto bowl and that was when Jaskaran came into the zone.
He was also helped by Toka missing his length every single time as he attempted the wide yorker. Jaskaran Malhotra targeted the wide long-off, straight, and long on boundaries as the arc allowed him to clear the ropes at ease. Jaskaran hit six sixes and the USA finished on 271/9. In the process, he smashed plenty of records.
Jaskaran’s knock of 173 is the highest by a batsman arriving into bat at No.5. He beat the previous record of 162 set by AB de Villiers during the 2015 World Cup against West Indies in Sydney batting at that position. The tally of most sixes in an innings was also equaled as he hit 16 in the whole innings, which is also a world record. He also shared a 55-run partnership for the final wicket with Saurabh Netrawalkar which was a record for the USA team.
The USA managed to win by 134 runs, with Papua New Guinea falling short by 137 runs.
Jaskaran Malhotra was born in Chandigarh on November 4, 1989, the youngster tried his opportunity at the domestic level in India. But, he did not get many opportunities and he shifted to the USA for a better future.
His arrival on the cricket scene came after USA Cricket was suspended for misgovernance by the ICC. After the suspension was lifted, USA cricket decided to get a lot of players on board. Among them, there were players like Sunny Sohal, Saurabh Netrawalkar and Jaskaran Singh. Jaskaran had a couple of games against Singapore, Namibia as well as Twenty20 Internationals against Canada. He impressed with his wicketkeeping skills but his batting was not up to the mark.
Jaskaran was selected for the St Lucia Stars in the Caribbean Premier League in 2019 but he did not get a single game. Before the game against Papua New Guinea, Jaskaran’s batting average was just 19. His highest score was 18 against Papua New Guinea and Namibia. In Twenty20 Internationals, he smashed 38 against Bermuda in Sandys Parish.
But, with his one knock, he has elevated himself into superstardom. The audacity of matching Yuvraj and overhauling AB de Villiers’ tally is something that very few people achieve in their lifetime. In the space of one match, Jaskaran has done it.
USA cricket is currently in very interesting times. They have gotten many international stars in the form of Corey Anderson, Unmukt Chand, Sami Aslam and others who are giving the country’s cricket a different edge altogether. Jaskaran’s ability will only fuel their ambition. The key for him now will be consistency.
