A six is the highest scoring shot for a batsman. Hence, whenever a batsman is under pressure or when he wants to take it to the opposition, he tries to hit a six. That said, going for a six also makes a player vulnerable to lose his wicket. Nevertheless, it is a surprise if a batsman has never hit a six in his career. In this article, we talk about five popular players who never hit a six in their ODI careers.
1) Manoj Prabhakar (India) – Played 130 Games Without Hitting A Six
Matches: 130 || Runs: 1858 || Avg: 24.13 || SR: 60.27 || Fours: 157
Although his primary skill was bowling, Manoj Prabhakar was a decent hand with the bat. Though his batting role was in the lower order, he was often used as a defensive opener. Manoj owns the rare distinction of both opening the batting and the bowling for his country. He did that 45 times in ODIs and 20 times in Tests.
Since he was usually sent to blunt the new ball, Manoj hardly had to go for a six. Hence, his ODI career ended without a maximum in his CV. Nevertheless, his contributions to Team India were decent. After retirement at the 1996 World Cup, the all-rounder got into a few controversies and has tried his hand in politics and coaching.
2) Geoffrey Boycott (England)
Matches: 36 || Runs: 1082 || Avg: 36.06 || SR: 53.56 || Fours: 84
A man of 108 Tests, Geoffrey Boycott had a late impact in ODIs. In fact, his ODI century came at the age of 39. Known for his solid defence, Boycott had a short but decent ODI career.
While England lost only 20 of the 108 Tests that Boycott played, the player tried his best in the ODI format, but he was too old to continue. That said, a six in the ODI format eluded the legend. Hence, he joins the list of players who never hit a six in their ODI careers.
3) Thilan Samaraweera (Sri Lanka)
Matches: 53 || Runs: 862 || Avg: 27.8 || SR: 69.29 || Fours: 76
One of the members of the Sri Lankan Team that got affected by a terrorist attack in Pakistan, Thilan Samaraweera is the eighth highest run-getter for his country in Tests. With a batting approach that including wearing the bowlers out, Samaraweera was not successful in ODIs.
Hence, despite playing around 50 ODI encounters, Samaraweera is one of the players who never hit a six in their ODI careers. Also, with a poor average, the player was not rated highly in the coloured jersey. Two years before his eventual retirement in 2013, Samaraweera had already played his last ODI game.
4) Callum Ferguson (Australia)
Matches: 30 || Runs: 663 || Avg: 41.43 || SR: 85.32 || Fours: 64
A player who made his Test debut at the age of 32, Callum Ferguson played a total of 30 ODI games for Australia. He was part of the final XI, which won the Champion’s Trophy in 2009. However, he suffered an injury in that game which ruled him out of action for one summer.
Although most of his fellow countrymen were aggressive cricketers, Callum had a conservative approach. His average of 41.43 and strike rate of 85.32 was good, but the conversion rate was not that great. Callum Ferguson announced retirement from first-class cricket in 2020.
5) Kepler Wessels (South Africa) – Never Scored A Six In His South African ODI Career
Matches: 55 || Runs: 1627 || Avg: 32.54 || SR: 51.76 || Fours: 124
A South-African born cricketer, Kepler Wessels first played International cricket for Australia. Although there were questions about his commitment, Kepler did a decent job as an Aussie. However, after the International cricket ban was lifted on South Africa, Kepler made the switch to his home nation and also became the captain of the team. After retirement, he got into coaching and was the Head Coach of Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2008.
An opening batsman, Kepler’s major strategy included frustrating the bowlers and taking calculated risks. However, he never scored a six for South Africa in his ODI career. For Australia, too, that sixes column was majorly dry. Only on two occasions was he able to get the ball out of the park in the yellow jersey, despite being one of the premier batsmen.
