What Vaibhav Suryavanshi said after breaking Chris Gayle's record of most sixes in IPL? What Chris Gayle said?
Rajasthan opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi scored 97 runs off just 29 balls against Hyderabad in the IPL Eliminator on Wednesday. He narrowly missed Chris Gayle's record for the fastest century in IPL history (30 balls).
Although Suryavanshi missed out on the fastest century in IPL history by a mere three runs, the Orange Cap—with 680 runs to his name—still belongs to him, achieved at a staggering strike rate of nearly 250.
No other player has scored a faster half-century (16 balls) in the IPL playoffs than he has. Furthermore, he has achieved the remarkable feat of smashing more than 10 sixes in a single match not just once or twice, but four times so far.
Given this context, Indian selectors now face a straightforward question—albeit a difficult challenge: on what grounds could they possibly justify not selecting him for the tour of Ireland?
Even a stalwart like Ravichandran Ashwin has said that this young man is undoubtedly worthy of a spot in the T20 squad.
Following his sensational innings against Hyderabad, Ashwin asked: "Why are we limiting our discussion to his selection for just a single format?"
Our absolute focus is on how to win the trophy
After the match, Vaibhav was asked if he was aware of the record for the fastest century. He replied, "I only learned about the record after I got out. At that moment, my entire focus was solely on scoring as many runs as possible for the team. Centuries will continue to happen in the future, but right now, our absolute focus is on how to win the trophy for the team."
Vaibhav added, "When we win, we simply carry that positive approach forward and shift our focus to the next match.Our aim is to win the next match in the same manner and reach the final."
This young lad provided incredible entertainment: Gayle
Meanwhile, legendary batsman Chris Gayle has praised Vaibhav Suryavanshi's explosive batting performance against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL.
Writing on the social media platform 'X', Chris Gayle stated, "Vaibhav is a magnificent player. This young lad provided incredible entertainment! The new 'Six Machine'!"
Vaibhav Suryavanshi has broken Chris Gayle's record in the ongoing IPL season.
So far in the current IPL season, Vaibhav Suryavanshi has smashed 65 sixes. In doing so, he has surpassed the record held by the West Indies' Chris Gayle for hitting the most sixes in a single T20 tournament.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi has now become the batsman with the most sixes in a single season of any T20 tournament.
Suryavanshi has also equaled Chris Gayle's record for hitting ten or more sixes in a single IPL innings.
Both players have now hit 10 or more sixes in an IPL innings on four separate occasions.