Kiwi blaster joins Chris Gayle as just the second man to accumulate more than 9,000 career runs in T20s
McCullum enters rare air with T20 milestone
New Zealand maestro Brendon McCullum has broken new ground, becoming just the second batsman to pass the 9,000 T20 career runs mark.
The former Black Caps captain blasted his way past the milestone in his first match for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in Sunday night's Indian Premier League action against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
McCullum follows West Indian Chris Gayle to the mark, but trails a long way behind the Jamaican, who has more than 11,000 T20 runs to his name from around the globe.
In fact, only 10 men have more than 7,000 runs, and the leading Australian run-scorer in the format is David Warner, with 7,668.
McCullum is also the second leading run-scorer in international T20 cricket, with 2,140 of his runs coming with the Black Caps. He sits behind fellow Kiwi Martin Guptill in that list, with both set to be overtaken by Virat Kohli.
Image Id: E15560AFC5D64D2581CB98C137DCC8C3 Image Caption: McCullum and de Villiers have a close call // BCCIMcCullum smashed a typically brazen 43 from 27 balls to get Bangalore away to a brisk start in the match against Kolkata, setting the foundation for his team to reach 176 in their 20 overs.
The Kiwi put on 45 runs batting with RCB captain Kohli in their first partnership together, while Kohli and South Africa superstar AB de Villiers added 64 together before they fell in consecutive deliveries to stall the innings.
McCullum is yet to bat with de Villiers in a match, but the pair did have a close encounter in the field, nearly colliding as they both rushed to take a catch.
McCullum took to social media after the match to hail his newest teammates.
I know we didn’t win but it was amazing to play alongside @ABdeVilliers17 and @imVkohli today. Massive respect. Looking forward to this season that is for sure!%E2%80%94 Brendon McCullum (@Bazmccullum) April 8, 2018
McCullum, who also plays with the Brisbane Heat in the BBL, was the Brisbane side's leading run-scorer in BBL|07 with 248 at a strike rate of 135.
Fellow New Zealander Daniel Vettori coaches McCullum at both Bangalore and Brisbane, while the other half of the Heat's "Bash Brothers" found himself on the opposite side as Chris Lynn made his comeback for Kolkata.
Lynn, playing his first game since his latest bout of shoulder surgery, managed one streaky boundary but was well caught by a fielder running back after skying a ball over cover to be dismissed for five.
A blistering 43 from 27 from @Bazmccullum for @RCBTweets, however @lynny50 & @KKRiders take the win in the #IPL2018 overnight. #TurnUpTheHeat #BashBrothers pic.twitter.com/4PVbcMHk7P%E2%80%94 Brisbane Heat (@HeatBBL) April 8, 2018
Top 10 T20 run scorers
Chris Gayle 11,068
Brendon McCullum 9,035
Kieron Pollard 8,048
Shoaib Malik 7,728
David Warner 7,668
Dwayne Smith 7,603
Brad Hodge 7,406
Suresh Raina 7,382
Virat Kohli 7,095
Rohit Sharma 7,045