There’s a saying, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way”, that holds true for the 23-year-old Sagar Mishra, who plays for Western Railway as he tore apart the opponent after smashing towering six sixes in an over of RCF offspinner Tushar Kumare.
Sagar had set the record in a tournament, which had also got the attention of cricket lovers.
The left-hander Sagar, who might be regretting missing out on a hundred, came to bat at No.4 for Western Railway on the Day Two of their Times Shield ‘B’ Division game to set their team at a new high.
“I’m an all-rounder. I bat at five and six, which means that I have to bat with the tail. I needed to develop my game accordingly, because the opponents tend to spread the field. I needed to learn how to clear the field,” said excited Sagar Mishra to Times of India, who’s confident to get noticed by the Railways selectors.
Sagar began his assault when he was on 51 off 35 balls. After hitting six sixes in his blistering innings, he had scored 91 off just 46 balls.
“It’s a difficult shot to hit. He bowls good left-arm spin, and is a good fielder too. He’s a good prospect for the Railways,” said Western Railway coach Dinesh Lad.
Last season Sagar played well for Railway’s in the U-23 tournament, bagging 23 wickets in seven matches. And also picked 15 vital wickets in four matches so far in the ongoing season.
“I was promoted to No.4, because their left-arm spinner was bowling well and I was sent to up the scoring rate. I just played normally, according to the situation. My only regret is that I couldn’t complete my hundred,” Sagar said.
The befuddled bowler and the opponent team had praised the effort of young Sagar.
“His stroke-play was superb. For me, his best six was the one he hit off the back-foot over mid-off,” said RCF offspinner Tushar Kumare.
Owing to the monetary problem, it was hard for Sagar, who didn’t look back and continued as a cricketer in his hometown Ulhasnagar, in the state of Maharashtra.
“After the fifth six, I suffered a severe cramp in my leg and had to lie down on the ground and drink some lemonade,” Sagar added.
Budding cricketer, who dreamt off making it big has a family earning meager income through a local grocery store.
“It’s a dream come true. I remember watching Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes in an over on TV nine years back. Never did I imagine that I’d do something similar,” said Sagar.
In 2015, Sagar made his First Class debut for Railways against Mumbai, where he hit nine sixes off the last 11 balls.
While playing for Railways senior team, Sagar claimed the wickets of Suryakumar Yadav and Akhil Herwadkar before scoring 46 runs.
Sagar also became third Indian cricketer to hit six sixes in an over after former cricketer-turned-commentator Ravi Shastri and Yuvraj Singh. Yuvraj smashed six sixes in an over of England’s paceman Stuart Broad in 2007 Twenty20 World Cup.
While playing for Mumbai, Shastri hit six consecutive sixes in six balls off Baroda’s spinner Tilak Raj in a Ranji Trophy match back in 1985.