Tailenders are generally regarded as the weakest batters in a playing XI. There is a reason why the team management sends them to bat at positions like number nine, 10 or 11. Usually, the players who bat at the last three positions of a batting lineup are specialist bowlers. It is natural that their batting skills are not the best because they earn their places in the playing XI as a bowler.
However, the teams should not underestimate the tailenders because they have nothing to lose, and sometimes, they end up scoring more runs than expected. The lower order batters generally swing their bat at everything because even if they get out early, the team management would not be so upset.
It is common to see tailender batters hitting more sixes in Test cricket than the top-order, and in this listicle now, we will look at the top three teams whose tailender batters have smashed the most sixes in Tests since 2019.
1. India – 55 sixes by tailenders
Team India’s lower-order batters have improved significantly in recent times. The likes of Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami have scored big for the team while batting in the last three positions. It would be wrong to call Patel and Thakur tailender batters, but they have batted at these positions in some matches.
2. England – 55 sixes by tailenders
England’s lower-order batters have also smacked 55 sixes in the last three years. However, England’s batters have faced 6,379 balls in Test cricket. India’s lower-order batters have only played 4,198 balls.
3. West Indies – 52 sixes
Most 6s by Tailenders in Test
— 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒃𝒂𝒔 (@Shebas_10dulkar) February 11, 2023
(Since 2019)
55 – 🇮🇳 (4198 balls)*
55 – 🏴 (6379 balls)
52 – 🏝 (4798 balls)#INDvsAUS
West Indies team’s players are known to be hard-hitters of the ball. The Caribbean lower-order batters have played 4,798 balls in Tests since 2019 and sent 52 of them out of the park.
