The 11th edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) began with a six-hitting extravaganza. At the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur today, the batsmen from Durbar Rajshahi and Fortune Barishal smashed a total of 29 sixes. Rajshahi accounted for 14 of those, while Barishal hit 15.
This match tied the record for the most sixes in a single game in BPL history, but it didn’t set a new one. The previous instance of 29 sixes in a BPL match came just last season when Chattogram Challengers faced Cumilla Victorians at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. In that game, Cumilla hit 18 sixes, including 10 by Will Jacks, while Chattogram managed 11 during their chase of 239 runs, eventually losing by 73 runs after being bowled out for 166.
In today’s match, Yasir Ali of Rajshahi hit the most sixes, clearing the ropes eight times. Barishal’s Faheem Ashraf followed with seven sixes, while Anamul Haque struck five. Mahmudullah added four, Shaheen Afridi hit three, and both Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Haris contributed one six each.
Despite tying the BPL record for most sixes in a match, Barishal and Rajshahi fell just short of the record for the most sixes in a game on Bangladeshi soil. That record, set during the 2014 ICC T20 World Cup, saw Ireland and the Netherlands hit a combined 30 sixes at the Sylhet International Stadium.
Globally, the record for the most sixes in a recognized T20 match stands at 42, achieved twice in 2024. The first was during an IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings at Eden Gardens in April. The second occurred in September during a Caribbean Premier League (CPL) game between St Kitts and Nevis Patriots and Guyana Amazon Warriors.
Even though Barishal and Rajshahi matched the BPL record for sixes in a match, they didn’t make it into the top five for most sixes in a single innings. The record for most sixes in a BPL innings belongs to Rangpur Riders, who smashed 21 sixes against Dhaka Dynamites in 2017 at Mirpur. On that occasion, Chris Gayle alone hit 18 sixes, setting a world record that Sahil Chauhan of Estonia matched in June this year.
