Rakheem Cornwall smashes 77-ball 205 with 17 fours, 22 sixes in T20

West Indies batter Rakheem Cornwall has smashed an unbeaten double century in a Twenty20 franchise competition in the US on Wednesday (October 5).

Cornwall, known as ‘Big Jimbo’, hit 22 sixes and 17 fours in his 77-ball 205 not out (strike rate 266.23) for Atlanta Fire against Square Drive in the Atlanta Open 2022 T20 League.

The right-handed Cornwall scored 200 of his runs in boundaries (68 from fours and 132 from sixes).

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This double century, however, will not be part of the official records.

The record for the highest individual score in a T20 game is 175 not out by Chris Gayle for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) against Pune Warriors (PW) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). It was achieved in 2013 at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Thanks to opener Cornwall’s blazing innings, his team posted a mammoth 326/1 in 20 overs. He and fellow opening batter Steven Taylor (53 off 18 with 5 fours 5 sixes) added 101 runs for the first wicket in just 6.1 overs.

In reply, Square Drive was restricted to 154/8 in 20 overs and Atlanta Fire won by 172 runs.

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Recently, Cornwall said he is a 360-degree player and his six-hitting ability comes naturally to him.

“Not really – I haven’t done any range-hitting and I think that (six-hitting) is natural. I think I’m strong enough down the ground or any area – (I’m) a 360(-degree) player. So, I just have to focus on shot selection and wait till the ball is in my area to put it away,” Cornwall was quoted as saying to ESPNcricinfo.

“Yes, I may hit 11 sixes one day, but on another day, I may get holed out off the first one. So you have to just back yourself as a player and trust your skills and go for what you believe in,” he added.

Cornwall, 29, has played nine Tests for West Indies and is yet to feature in ODIs and T20Is. However, in the T20 format, he has played 66 matches.

Last month, he played for Barbados Royals in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 where his team lost to Jamaica Tallawahs in the final.

Cornwall is not part of the West Indies squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 that starts in Australia later this month.

The Atlanta Open features 16 franchises with four teams each divided into four groups. The tournament, which is being played at the Atlanta Cricket Fields near Chestatee, Georgia, ends on October 9. The winning team will receive a prize money of $75,000.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!

Rahkeem Cornwall put Atlanta Fire on top with a DOUBLE century going 205*(77) with 2️⃣2️⃣ MASSIVE sixes 🤯🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/1iRfyniiUw

— Minor League Cricket (@MiLCricket) October 6, 2022