Rohit Sharma continued his rich vein of form with the bat, hitting a third consecutive 50+ score in the first match of the three-ODI series against South Africa. He had finished the series against Australia Down Under with scores of 73 and 121 not out.

After being put into bat by South Africa captain Aiden Markram, Rohit began cautiously but soon hit the fifth gear. He completed his 50 off 43 deliveries, his 60th in the format, and finished with 57 off 51, hitting five boundaries and three sixes. He also added 136 runs for the second wicket with Virat Kohli.

His third six, a pull over deep square leg off Marco Jansen, took him past Afridi’s 351 sixes in ODI cricket. He lost his wicket to a Jansen delivery that kept low in the all-rounder’s next over.

The former India captain’s 352 sixes have come in 269 innings. He is followed by Afridi, Chris Gayle (331), Sanath Jayasuriya (270) and MS Dhoni (229).

Most sixes in men's ODI history, full list

Last updated when Rohit Sharma broke the record

Player Team Innings 6s
Rohit Sharma India 269* 352
Shahid Afridi Pakistan, Asia XI, ICC World XI 369 351
Chris Gayle West Indies, ICC World XI 294 331
Sanath Jayasuriya Sri Lanka, Asia XI 433 270
MS Dhoni India, Asia XI 297 229
Eoin Morgan Ireland, England 230 220
AB de Villiers South Africa, Africa XI 218 204
Brendon McCullum New Zealand 228 200
Sachin Tendulkar India 452 195
Sourav Ganguly India, Asia XI 300 190
Martin Guptill New Zealand 195 187
Jos Buttler England 169 182
Ricky Ponting Australia, ICC World XI 365 162
Virat Kohli India 294* 157
Glenn Maxwell Australia 136 155
Yuvraj Singh India, Asia XI 278 155
Chris Cairns New Zealand, ICC World XI 193 153

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