Bevon Jacobs smashed an unbeaten 202 off 137 balls for Auckland against Otago in the Ford Trophy on Thursday, 12 November 2026, hitting 21 sixes — the second-most ever struck in a List A innings. Yet the record-breaking knock still ended in defeat, as Otago chased down Auckland's total of 334 with five balls to spare at Eden Park's Outer Oval.

Jacobs fell just two sixes short of the List A world record of 23, held by Australia's D'Arcy Short. It was the 24-year-old's maiden List A century, and he turned it into a double century in remarkable fashion.

From 39 for 3 to a double century

Jacobs walked to the crease with Auckland in trouble at 39 for three in the 12th over. He steadied the innings first, putting on 100 runs for the fourth wicket with Lachlan Stackpole, who made 46, and then adding 94 for the fifth wicket with Ryan Harrison, who scored 32.

He reached his first List A hundred off 97 balls. What followed was a stunning acceleration: Jacobs needed only 40 more deliveries to bring up his second hundred. He began the final over, bowled by Zac Cumming, on 172 not out and cleared the ropes five times to reach 202, finishing with seven fours and 21 sixes.

No other Auckland batter passed 46, which underlines how much of the innings belonged to one man. Auckland closed on 334 for eight from their 50 overs.

One of the great List A innings — in a losing cause

Jacobs moved past Gerrie Snyman and Eoin Morgan, who had each hit 17 sixes in a List A innings. Only Short, who struck 23 sixes in his 257 for Western Australia against Queensland at Hurstville Oval in September 2018, has hit more in a one-day innings.

The knock was the third double century in Ford Trophy history, after Jamie How's 222 and Chad Bowes' 205, and the highest score by an Auckland batter in List A cricket, passing Colin Munro's unbeaten 174 from the 2017-18 season. It was also the fifth-highest score by a New Zealand batter in the format, behind Martin Guptill's 237 not out and Amelia Kerr's 232 not out.

Otago, however, refused to be beaten. They reached 338 for five, with wicketkeeper Max Chu hitting the winning boundary on his way to 75 not out off 55 balls. Jacobs' innings became only the fourth double century in List A cricket to finish on the losing side.

What it means for Jacobs

Jacobs is a highly rated New Zealand batter who has played 16 Twenty20 internationals, averaging 31.90 at a strike rate of 144.34, with two fifties. He is yet to make his one-day international debut, but an innings of this scale will be hard for the selectors to ignore.

Mumbai Indians bought him for Rs 30 lakh at the Indian Premier League 2025 mega auction, and this knock was another reminder of the clean hitting that earned him that deal. This season's Ford Trophy is also trialling a single ball for the whole innings, an experiment aimed at restoring some balance between bat and ball — although on this evidence, Jacobs needed no help at all.

For Auckland, the result stings: a once-in-a-career innings, a new club record, and still no win. For Jacobs, it was the day he announced himself as one of the most destructive batters in New Zealand cricket.

Sources: Wisden and SportsAdda.