Yuvraj Singh hit Stuart Broad for six consecutive sixes in a single over at the 2007 T20 World Cup — the fastest T20 fifty ever at the time (12 balls), one of only a handful of times six sixes in an over have been hit in international cricket.
The inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007 was a new format for most players — Twenty20 had only been played domestically. India's squad, captained by MS Dhoni, was a young group with little pressure of expectation. Stuart Broad was a 21-year-old seamer on his first major international assignment.
England's Andrew Flintoff had an altercation with Yuvraj before the over — reportedly getting in his face and sledging him after dismissing Yuvraj had seemed likely. Whatever was said, it lit a fuse. Broad was brought on to bowl in the 19th over. Yuvraj took guard.
Ball 1: Full toss on leg stump — dispatched over deep square leg for six. Ball 2: Good length outside off — driven over extra cover for six. Ball 3: Short ball — pulled over midwicket for six. Ball 4: Full and straight — lofted straight back over Broad's head for six. Ball 5: Wide full toss — smashed over long-on for six. Ball 6: Short outside off — uppercut over third man for six.
The over cost 36 runs. The crowd at Kingsmead was delirious. Yuvraj was on 42 off 12 balls by the end of the over, and he reached 50 off his 12th ball — the fastest T20 international half-century in history at the time. India won by 18 runs.
Broad's face as he walked back to his mark after the sixth six became a meme long before memes existed. Yuvraj later said he barely remembers the over — he was in a rage so focused it was almost unconscious. The altercation with Flintoff had been the catalyst.
Andrew Flintoff's alleged sledge — the provocation that lit the fuse
Six consecutive sixes in an over — equalling the feat of Gary Sobers (1968) and Ravi Shastri (1985) in first-class cricket
Yuvraj reaches fifty off 12 balls — fastest T20I half-century at the time
September 19, 2007
India vs England, T20 World Cup group stage, Durban
19th over
Flintoff-Yuvraj confrontation before the over
19th over, balls 1-6
Six consecutive sixes off Stuart Broad — 36 runs off the over
End of innings
Yuvraj 50 off 12 balls — India win by 18 runs
The most explosive single over in T20 international history. Six sixes in a row had only been achieved twice before (Sobers 1968, Shastri 1985) and both times in domestic cricket. Yuvraj did it on the world stage, in a World Cup.
The over is replayed more than almost any other single moment in modern cricket. It defined T20 cricket's possibilities — the idea that any bowler could be destroyed in any over, regardless of reputation. It made Yuvraj Singh a national hero overnight.
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