*Most Sixes In ODIs So Far (2013).

1) Shahid Afridi (Pak), "19 Sixes" In 12 Matches ,
2) Misbah Ul Haq (Pak), "19 Sixes" In 20 Matches,
3) MUHAMMAD Hafeez (Pak) , "16 Sixes" In 20 Matches,
4) Brendon McCullum (N.Z), "16 Sixes" In 12 Matches,
5) Johnson Charles (W.I), "16 Sixes", In 15 Matches.

Finch the new master blaster

When Chris Gayle stunned cricket fans by blasting 175 not out from 66 deliveries in the Indian Premier League earlier this year Aaron Finch was one of his main casualties, as both the opposition captain and by conceding 28 runs from the five deliveries he bowled to him.

The powerfully built Australian can now lay claim to inflicting such destruction rather than striving in vain to stifle it, following his international record 156 from 63 deliveries in the first Twenty20 in England on Thursday night.

The right-hander from Colac spearheaded Australia to a 39-run victory, the nation's first in any format since February. He also became the first batsman to score a Twenty20 century for Australia. Of his 14 sixes against England four came at significant junctures: his first delivery, and also his 50-, 100- and 150-run milestones.

''It was just one of those days where things seemed to hit the middle of the bat and things went my way,'' Finch said. ''I'm still feeling pretty good to be honest.''
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Finch's feat was in stark contrast to his wretched summer for Australia, where his 10 limited-overs appearances at the top of the order produced only 117 runs. But the 26-year-old got another chance for Australia because of his sparkling form just below the top level.

Finch's century against England was his sixth in the past year, including two for Australia A. Over that period Finch has played 55 limited-overs matches and scored 2198 runs at an average of 43.1, with 11 half-centuries. He was named the best player in last summer's Big Bash League and also scored two hefty Ryobi Cup centuries for Victoria, 154 against Queensland and 140 against NSW.

Most encouraging for Australian cricket supporters is Finch's desperation to replicate his sparkling limited-overs form in first-class matches. Over the past two seasons he has averaged a paltry 15.79 in the Sheffield Shield, which led to his axing. His desire to play shield prompted an unsuccessful request earlier this year to be released from the final year of his contract with Victoria to join NSW.

Finch demonstrated his desire to become a shield regular by declining a contract extension from the Bushrangers. A decision on whether he stays next year is likely to rest both on his form and his place in Victoria's selection queue. He averaged only 26.16 in Australia A's past three first-class matches scored 51 and 88 in one match against South Africa A. ''Being in and out of the side is never ideal and I suppose last year I let a couple of chances slip,'' the Melbourne Renegades star said.

''For my own confidence and probably for the selectors' confidence in me, it's nice to get a big score and repay a bit of that faith in me.''

The positive reviews Finch earned for his captaincy of Melbourne Renegades last summer were significant in his elevation to Australia A for two series this year, at home to England Lions and away in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

The immediate implication of Finch's record-breaking innings is his likely retention for the full limited-overs series in England, and possibly also for the October limited-overs tour of India. Once he returns, however, there will be significant pressure on Victoria - and rightly so - to give him an extended run in its shield team because of his national-selection potential.

The reason Finch deserves credits in the shield for his limited-overs form is that the majority of his stroke-play in the latter is based on conventional shots. If his one-day and T20 innings typically consisted of overtly risky and improvised shots it would be a different matter, but there is little about Finch's approach that would not be conducive to red-ball cricket, provided he can demonstrate restraint over long periods and an ability to curb his strokeplay.

With the Bushrangers also boasting talented young batsmen such as Peter Handscomb and Michael Hill, and having brought in all-rounder Daniel Christian during the winter, the pressure for batting slots in their line-up is expected to be fierce. Finch, at least initially, deserved immunity.

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Cricket News

Tendulkar said the event provided him the opportunity to play against the best players of that era, but is disappointed at not playing against his hero Viv Richards
Tendulkar scored 283 runs in the 1992 World Cup at an average of just over 47 and was man of the match in India’s only two victories – over Pakistan by 43 runs and Zimbabwe by 55 runs.
The maestro retired from limited overs cricket last year after playing in 463 ODIs in which he scored 18,426 runs, including 49 centuries. In the 198 Tests to date, Tendulkar has scored 15,837 runs at an average of just under 54 with 51 centuries.
Remembering his progress from a ball boy in the ICC Cricket World Cup 1987 to being alongside the legends of that era in the best tournament, a modest Tendulkar said: “I remember in 1987, I was a ball boy so it was a big transformation for me from being a ball boy to participating in the next World Cup.
“I still remember the group picture of teams in Sydney. It was followed by a dinner at the Darling Harbour. It was an unbelievable experience with all the top players from the world in the room. I didn’t speak much to anyone. But just to see them from close vicinity was special,” he said.
For Tendulkar, the World Cup was the first chance to play with some of the big names.
“England had Ian Botham, Graham Gooch, Allan Lamb. If you talk about South Africa, there was Kepler Wessels leading them and Peter Kirsten as a senior player. For Pakistan, there was Imran Khan, Javed Miandad and Wasim Akram. Having got a chance to play against them in Pakistan in 1989 itself was wonderful, but playing them in a world championship was a different feeling altogether.
“West Indies had Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, Malcolm Marshall and Curtly Ambrose. I was quite disappointed that Vivian Richards was not part of the West Indies squad. He was (and still is) my hero, so it was disappointing that I could not play against him.
“Australia was led by Allan Border, and Steve and Mark Waugh, and Craig McDermott were an important part of their squad. New Zealand had Martin Crowe and John Wright who played that World Cup. Sri Lanka had the likes of Aravinda de Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga.”
Tendulkar said the World Cup also introduced a number of newcomers to the world who went on to become household names and great ambassadors for the game.
“I have to say Allan Donald was a big name then. Everyone spoke about how good he was. Then there was Jonty Rhodes. His run out of Inzamam-ul-Haq was one of the highlights of the World Cup. Not many guys have seen a run out like that!
“West Indies had Brian Lara who was special with his flamboyant batting. For Pakistan there was Wasim Akram who was at the peak of his career, and Inzamam-ul-Haq who played an important knock in the semi-final. From New Zealand, Mark Greatbatch gave them some amazing starts, but Martin Crowe was the one who batted beautifully and was consistent throughout the tournament,” he said.
As a player who has played in three different decades, Tendulkar considered himself lucky to have been pitted his skills against the great all-rounders of the 1980s.
“There were some real big names and some of the world’s top all-rounders. One thing I feel happy about is that I played against all of them: Richard Hadlee, Malcolm Marshall, Clive Rice, Kapil Dev, Imran Khan and Ian Botham. They were the best all-rounders the game had produced.
“Having been able to play against them I consider myself very fortunate. It was quite an experience to play those top guys,” he said.

Wayne Parnell and Simon Harmer put up a 50-run stand for the seventh wicket after their batting line up was rocked by India A bowlers.