Swinging for the fences (Part II, the rest)

Finished with the top end of the order, we draw our focus to the players who didn’t always have the greatest opportunities to bat but when they did get to the crease they made sure to make the most of it.

I present the final five in the biggest hitting Test XI of the last four decades.

7. (VC) Adam Gilchrist
Was there ever any doubt to who the ‘keeper for this team would be? The man who many would argue redefined the role of the keeper-batsman. That top of the handle grip made for some long and powerful swings which more often than not led to some crowd killers.

The only player to amass 100 sixes in Test match cricket, anyone lucky enough to have seen Gilly play knows that no argument was needed to justify his spot in this six-hitting spectacle of a team.

8. Shahid Afridi
The front-line spinner in the team, boom boom Afridi is either a cheap wicket or an economy rate destroyer, but whichever Afridi comes to the crease you know it’s going to be exciting. Some will say that he shows a lack of discipline at the crease, I’d say that discipline doesn’t allow you to score a 37-ball century.

A monster against spin bowling, this man has his eye in as soon as he wakes up in the morning.

9. Chris Cairns
One of my favourite all-rounders of all time, Chris Cairns wasn’t the fastest starter to an innings but once his eye was in there wasn’t a ground in the world that could hold him. A career marred by injuries, Cairns could mix the powerful cut shots through the field with towering strokes back over the bowler’s head.

I can still remember my dad telling me how Lance Cairns (Chris’ father) was the biggest hitter he’d ever seenm so it’s safe to say that the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.

10. Tim Southee
In another life Tim Southee must’ve really pissed off the man who invented the ‘six and out rule’ for the backyard.

In a young career, Southee has already amassed 43 maximums accounting for more than 33 per cent of his total boundaries hit. Southee has the potential to be one of the biggest hitting all-rounders to ever grace the field.

Now before any of you start saying “New Zealand grounds are smaller”, just remember that Southee is hitting just as many sixes per game away from home as he does in New Zealand.

11. Shoaib Akhtar
With close to 65 per cent of this man’s runs coming from boundaries, Akhtar took his exciting approach to bowling and mimicked it with bat in hand. Definitely not the best tail-ender to ever grace the field but with little regard for his wicket and probably tired from his massive run-up 4s and 6s always seemed like the best choice.

Andy Bichel (12th man)
The hard hitting Queenslander and one of my personal favourite cricketers of all time I would feel disappointed in myself if I left off the career 12th man. With as many Test match appearances as 12th man appearances, this man was a genuine first class all-rounder and an underrated cricketer.

Although the six hitting may not have been there, he always knew how to keep the runs flowing with an array of strokes everywhere on the field.