Abhishek Sharma Becomes 2nd Indian Opener After Rohit Sharma To...

Hours after losing the No. 1 spot in the ICC T20I batting rankings, Abhishek Sharma opened the innings for India in the first T20I of five-match series against England and scored 59 runs at the Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street.

The left-handed opener from Amritsar faced just 24 balls and smashed six fours and four sixes during his stay at the crease on Wednesday (July 1). With those four maximums, Abhishek took his tally to 102 sixes in T20Is for India, becoming only the fifth Indian batter after Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya to hit 100 or more sixes in the format.

Most sixes for India in T20Is

PLAYER	TIME SPAN	MATCHES	RUNS	SIXES
Rohit Sharma	2007-2024	159	4231	205
Suryakumar Yadav	2021-2026	113	3272	179
Hardik Pandya	2016-2026	138	2288	126
Virat Kohli	2010-2024	125	4188	124
Abhishek Sharma	2024-2026	49	1546	102
KL Rahul	2016-2022	72	2265	99
Sanju Samson	2015-2026	65	1405	84
Yuvraj Singh	2007-2017	58	1177	74
Tilak Varma	2023-2026	52	1477	73
Ishan Kishan	2021-2026	48	1341	70

Abhishek, who made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in Harare in July 2024, has opened the batting for India in 46 of

his 49 T20I matches and in 46 innings as opener, he has smashed 102 sixes.

The 24-year-old, who needed just 20 balls to reach his half-century for the Shreyas Iyer-led side in the first T20I,  is only the second Indian opening batter after Rohit Sharma to hit 100 or more sixes in T20Is.

Rohit represented India in 159 T20Is between 2007 and 2024 and opened the batting in 125 matches. In 124 innings as an opener, he smashed 184 sixes.

Most sixes for India in T20Is as opener

PLAYER	TIME SPAN	MATCHES	INNINGS	RUNS	SIXES
Rohit Sharma	2009-2024	125	124	3750	184
Abhishek Sharma	2024-2026	46	46	1522	101
KL Rahul	2016-2022	55	54	1826	84
Sanju Samson	2020-2026	31	31	932	63
Shikhar Dhawan	2011-2021	68	66	1759	50
Yashasvi Jaiswal	2023-2024	23	22	723	38
Ishan Kishan	2021-2026	32	32	838	37
Shubman Gill	2023-2025	36	36	869	26
Ruturaj Gaikwad	2021-2023	18	17	500	20
Virat Kohli	2011-2024	17	17	551	18

In the list of batters with most sixes for India in T20Is as opener, Rohit and Abhishek are followed by KL Rahul, Sanju Samson and Shikhar Dhawan. Rahul has hit 84 sixes as an opener for India, while Samson has struck 63 sixes batting at No. 1 or No. 2. Dhawan finished his T20I career with 50 sixes as an opening batter.

The overall record for the most sixes by an opening batter in T20I cricket belongs to Austria’s Karanbir Singh. He has smashed 207 sixes in 56 T20I innings as an opener for Austria.

Most sixes in T20Is as opener

PLAYER	COUNTRY	TIME SPAN	MATCHES	RUNS	SIXES
Karanbir Singh	Austria	2024-2026	56	2525	207
Muhammad Waseem	UAE	2021-2026	98	3370	196
Rohit Sharma	India	2009-2024	125	3750	184
Martin Guptill	New Zealand	2009-2022	103	3170	161
Paul Stirling	Ireland	2010-2026	159	3818	140
Evin Lewis	West Indies	2016-2026	63	1758	136
Quinton de Kock	South Africa	2013-2026	107	3065	133
Ravija Sandaruwan	Kuwait	2019-2026	80	2094	122
George Munsey	Scotland	2015-2026	86	2572	118
Aaron Finch	Australia	2012-2022	91	2848	116
Finn Allen	New Zealand	2021-2026	62	1663	115
David Warner	Australia	2009-2024	103	3109	115
Rahmanullah Gurbaz	Afghanistan	2019-2026	79	2112	110
Chris Gayle	West Indies	2006-2021	62	1660	107
Jos Buttler	England	2016-2026	78	2508	105
Kushal Bhurtel	Nepal	2021-2026	72	2132	102
Abhishek Sharma	India	2024-2026	46	1522	101

Abhishek, who got out for a golden duck in India’s last T20I match against Ireland in Belfast on June 28, 2026, added 82 runs off 38 balls with captain Shreyas Iyer for the third wicket in the first T20I against England to help India bounce back from 6/2 in two overs and post a fighting total of 189/7 in their quota of 20 overs.