NEW DELHI: England batter Zak Crawley achieved a remarkable Test record by smashing a six in the opening over against New Zealand in Wellington.
After New Zealand’s captain Tom Latham elected to field first, Crawley aimed for a quick start whilst trying to find his rhythm. Facing Tim Southee in the first over, he initially got runs through a thick inside edge towards the leg side off the first delivery.
Following two runs off the subsequent delivery, Crawley waited for his next scoring chance on Southee’s final ball. He struck it powerfully straight back over the bowler, managing sufficient height to clear the long-off boundary for six.
The over yielded 10 runs for England and marked a significant milestone for Crawley.
This feat marks only the third instance in Test cricket history where a six was scored in the opening over.
The previous two instances occurred in the same over when West Indies’ Chris Gayle struck Sohag Gazi for two sixes during a Test match against Bangladesh match in 2012.
Notably, as Gazi bowled spin, Crawley became the first batsman to hit a six off a pace bowler in the first over of a Test innings.