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NEW DELHI: First ball: single. Next eight balls: six sixes, 41 runs, and IPL history rewritten. On a Sunday night at Chepauk, there was no easing into the innings for Urvil Patel, only immediate destruction.With Chennai Super Kings chasing 204 against Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL 2026 match, the 26-year-old walked in after Sanju Samsons dismissal in the fourth over. What followed was one of the most explosive starts in IPL history.Then three consecutive maximums off Avesh Khan. Digvesh Rathi disappeared into the stands repeatedly. Mohammed Shami was not spared either. In the blink of an eye, Urvil had rocketed to a 13-ball fifty - the joint-fastest in IPL history.And buried within that mayhem was another extraordinary record.Urvil became the first batter in IPL history to smash six sixes within the first eight balls of an innings. By the time he had faced just eight deliveries, he had already raced to 41 not out comfortably eclipsing the previous highest score after eight balls in IPL history, which stood at 33.An emotional Urvil celebrated the landmark by pulling out a handwritten note that read: This is for you Papa.By the time his breathtaking knock ended at 65 off just 23 balls, packed with eight towering sixes, CSK were firmly in control of the chase and eventually sealed victory with four balls to spare.But for those who know Urvil closely, this was not madness. It was meticulous practice. Three days before the game, the wicketkeeper-batter had already warned his coach.Mai dhamaka karungaOn Sunday night, he delivered exactly that. Bola tha usne, main dhamaka karunga theek teen din pehle match se. Confident tha. Lekin itna bada dhamaka karega, yeh nahi pata tha, Urvils coach Prakash Patani told TimesofIndia.com.The aggressive right-hander only got his extended run in the CSK XI after Ayush Mhatre suffered a hamstring injury. Yet in just four matches, the intent has been unmistakable.Even before the LSG carnage, the signs were already there. After falling for 4 against Gujarat Titans in his first outing, Urvil bounced back with a blazing 24 off 12 balls against Mumbai Indians, hammering two fours and two sixes. Then came a 9-ball 17 against Delhi Capitals, a modest score on paper, but one that still included two towering sixes.Attack, regardless of the situation, has been Urvil's mantra. Noted commentator Ian Bishop summed it up perfectly on air during the DC game. He is a no-nonsense kind of batter. This is what CSK needed.Urvil Patels 200-sixes-a-day obsessionThe six-hitting phenomenon that Urvil has become is not a product of chance or natural instinct alone - it is the result of deliberate training, discipline and sharp focus heading into IPL 2026.Urvil had made power-hitting the central focus of his preparation for IPL 2026. Behind the scenes, the Gujarat batter was following a brutal training routine built around one staggering target: hit 200 sixes every single day.According to coach Prakash Patani, Urvil embraced the challenge relentlessly at the PCCC Academy Cricket Ground near New Gunj Bazar in Palanpur, Gujarat.200 sixes he used to hit in a day. That was the kind of preparation he did for IPL 2026. Hitting one or two sixes is fine, but eight consistently at this level is not easy. Theres massive hard work behind this, Patani said.He didnt miss a single day, and this process went on for more than a month. He used to come at 5 am and practise till 1 or sometimes 2 pm, with short breaks in between. Most of the time, we didnt even use a bowling machine. I bowled to him with the help of a robo arm. He practised only with Kookaburra balls, he added.There was hunger in him. He was adamant about doing well in this IPL. He always said, mujhe mauka mila hai, kuch logon ko milta hai; main kuch alag karna chahta hoon (Ive got this opportunity very few do. I want to do something different).Urvil Patel: An elite six-hitterAnd statistically, he already is. One of the cleanest ways to measure six-hitting efficiency in T20 cricket is balls per six: essentially how many deliveries a batter takes to clear the ropes once. The lower the number, the more destructive the hitter.Urvil has smashed 90 sixes in just 841 balls in T20 cricket, giving him an astonishing balls-per-six rate of 9.34. That places him in elite territory.Among major T20 power-hitters, only a handful of players operate below the 10-balls-per-six mark:For context, Urvil is currently striking sixes more frequently than Glenn Maxwell, Heinrich Klaasen, Suryakumar Yadav, Rohit Sharma.His six-hitting frequency translates to 10.7 sixes per 100 balls: a number that firmly places him in the ultra-elite six-hitter bracket in T20 cricket.Of course, sample size matters. Most names on that list have sustained those numbers across thousands of balls and over several leagues worldwide. But purely in terms of six-hitting efficiency, Urvil is already operating in rare company.The Dhoni bat connectionAhead of IPL 2026, Urvil also received a special set of bats, including one gifted by legendary India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.He got a bat from Dhoni. It had a heavy bottom hand. He practised with that bat in the CSK nets. In fact, he even told Dhoni that the bat felt slightly heavy. Dhoni told him, this will help you hit big sixes, practice with this, Patani revealed.Urvil trained with that bat in the CSK nets and later got a custom-made bat with a slightly heavy bottom hand. Thats the bat he used against LSG.Being a wicketkeeper-batter himself, Urvil has always idolised Dhoni.He is grateful that he is sharing the dressing room and field with that legend. Dhoni tells him, jaise khelte ho waise khelna. Agar achha cricketer banna hai to hamesha zameen pe rehna (play the way you naturally play. If you want to become a great cricketer, always stay grounded), the coach said.A relentless six-hitter in domestic cricketUrvils six-hitting reputation did not begin in the IPL. During the 2024-25 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he smashed a 28-ball T20 century - the fastest by an Indian and the second-fastest in mens T20 cricket overall which included 12 sixes. He also struck a 36-ball hundred against Uttarakhand a week later, again smashing 11 sixes. In List A cricket, he owns a 41-ball century - the second-fastest by an Indian behind only Yusuf Pathan.In fact, that season Urvil hit the most sixes with 29 in six innings, eclipsing the likes of Abhishek Sharma (18 in 7), Priyansh Arya (23 in 9) and Rajast Patidar (27 in 9). And this was no one-season wonder.The next season, Urvil managed 18 sixes in 7 innings, but most strikingly, he finished with the second-best strike-rate for a player with min. 50 balls faced for the season (243.75), only behind Abhishek Shamas 243.75.Urvil was first picked up by Gujarat Titans ahead of IPL 2023 for his base price of Rs 20 lakh but did not play a single game during his stint with the franchise. He was eventually released ahead of the IPL 2024 auction. 131003795Despite strong domestic performances, he surprisingly went unsold again at the IPL 2025 auction. His fortunes changed when Chennai Super Kings signed him as an injury replacement for Vansh Bedi during the 2025 season. He featured in three matches that year before being retained for Rs 30 lakh ahead of IPL 2026.Now, after one unforgettable night of six-hitting destruction, CSK may have unearthed exactly what they were searching for: a fearless boundary-hunter built for modern T20 cricket.

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Rory McIlroy has moved to reassure supporters that a toe injury will not hamper his bid for glory at this week's PGA Championship after he was seen limping during Sunday's final round at the Truist Championship.The Masters champion revealed he has developed a blister beneath the nail of his right foot's smallest toe, but insisted the issue would not prevent him from competing at Aronimink Golf Club near Philadelphia, where the second major of the season begins on Thursday."So I can't really get to it or so it's a little sore, but I'll be all right," McIlroy told reporters following his round in North Carolina.The discomfort first emerged on Friday afternoon, McIlroy explained, with the awkward positioning of the blister making it difficult to treat.TRENDINGStoriesVideosYour SayWhen questioned whether the injury had contributed to his disappointing third round on Saturday, where he carded a four-over-par 75 that effectively ended his chances in Charlotte, the Northern Irishman was emphatic in his response."No, not at all. I wish that was an excuse but absolutely not," McIlroy stated firmly.That poor Saturday performance proved costly, derailing what had been a promising week at the tournament. However, McIlroy refused to attribute any of his struggles to the painful blister affecting his movement.The 36-year-old revealed he had already visited Aronimink last week to familiarise himself with the venue ahead of the major championship."It was nice to get an early look at it," he said. "It just means that the week of the tournament you're not under pressure to play a lot of holes."LATEST SPORTS NEWS:Transgender athlete wins three events as protest erupts at US track meetLuke Littler puts dream career move on hold because of girlfriend Faith MillarGary Neville, Ian Wright and Jamie Redknapp give VAR verdicts after Arsenal win dramatic West Ham matchThe four-time major winner noted that practice rounds at the PGA Championship tend to be lengthy affairs, prompting him to plan a lighter schedule of just nine holes on both Tuesday and Wednesday.Before heading to Philadelphia, McIlroy intended to return home on Sunday evening for some much-needed rest, planning to sleep in his own bed and continue working on his game at his home practice facility.McIlroy bounced back impressively on Sunday, posting a four-under 67 to conclude his week in Charlotte on a positive note.The recovery came after extensive work on the practice range following his difficult third round, where he had been struggling with shots drifting left."I started to hit it left yesterday with everything," McIlroy explained."I was much more aware of it and did a better job of managing it today. I spent a good bit of time on the range last night just trying to straighten it out."The session proved productive, with McIlroy confirming he had identified solutions to the technical issues that plagued him on Saturday.He planned to continue practising at home before making the journey to Philadelphia later in the week.Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter

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