Another T20 World Cup is coming for India. India, the first champions of this tournament and the powerhouse of cricket, are heading to the USA and the West Indies for the next edition. This time, there are questions about whether they can be called favorites.
India has taken a big risk with their batting line-up. Instead of fully embracing the T20 style, they have chosen players based on their skills rather than their recent IPL form. They have picked players who can play the traditional, long game rather than relying on modern, data-driven strategies.
We don’t know how this batting line-up will perform. What we do know is how batters have done in past tournaments and who has excelled Let’s take a look:
5. Gautam Gambhir
Gautam Gambhir, the new mentor of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and a potential future coach for India’s T20 team, has scored 524 runs in T20 World Cups. He first played in the 2007 tournament, where he was a star for India, scoring 227 runs with an average of 37.83.
In this series, he made two consecutive half-centuries against England and New Zealand in the group stage and an impressive match-winning 75 in the final. This tournament marked him as a “big-match player.”
Gambhir participated in three more editions of the tournament but couldn’t replicate his initial success in South Africa. He scored 148 runs, including one half-century, in the 2009 edition, 69 runs in 2010, and 80 runs in 2012. Overall, he played 20 matches in the tournament with a strike rate of 118.01.
4. MS Dhoni
The captain who won in 2007 is also on the list. Everyone knows how MS Dhoni led a young team without many stars in his first time as captain. He kept winning and achieved everything possible in cricket.
Overall, he scored 529 runs with an average of 35.26 and a strike rate of 123.88 in 29 innings, across six editions until 2016. He wasn’t always consistent in the competition, partly because he batted lower in the middle order, which is a tough spot in a new format.
However, he played some memorable and crucial innings, like scoring 45 runs off 33 balls against South Africa in 2007, 23* off 13 balls in a one-run win over South Africa in 2012, 22* off 12 balls against Bangladesh in 2014, and 18* off 10 balls against Australia in 2016.
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3. Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh, possibly India’s first true T20 player who truly understood the format, rightfully takes the third spot on this list. He scored 593 runs in 31 innings with a strike rate of 128.91, the second-best among the top five.
He was the undeniable star of the 2007 victory, playing with a strike rate of 194.74. Yuvraj amazed the cricket world with scores of 58 off 16 balls and 70 off 30 balls in consecutive games against England and Australia; the first match included his famous six sixes in one over.
He performed well in 2009, but his performance dropped significantly afterward as he battled cancer. In the four tournaments up to 2016, his next best innings was a 60 off 43 balls against his favorite opponent, Australia, leading to a huge win for India in Bangladesh.
2. Rohit Sharma
This will be Rohit Sharma’s ninth T20 World Cup. He has played in every edition, starting as a young middle-order batsman in 2007 and now being a five-time IPL winner and India’s captain in 2024. Even though his recent form in T20s is a concern, his experience is invaluable.
Rohit is the fourth-highest run-scorer in the tournament’s history, with 963 runs at an average of 34.39 and a strike rate of 127.88 in 36 innings. His potential was evident with an unbeaten 50 and 30 against South Africa and Pakistan (in the final) in 2007. In 2009, he scored his best of 79* (46) against Australia.
He made a few half-centuries in the next two tournaments but had three disappointing tournaments in 2016, 2021, and 2022. His T20 performance has declined in recent years, and he hasn’t been as impressive as some of the younger players. India hopes this will change in 2024.
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1. Virat Kohli
You could call Virat Kohli Mr. T20 World Cups, and no one would argue. Even during his rough patch in 2022, he scored an incredible 82* off 53 balls against Pakistan, one of the best innings in T20 history.
He first played in the tournament in 2012, scoring a solid 50 against Afghanistan and a match-winning 78* against Pakistan. In the next two editions, he was unstoppable, averaging 106.33 and 136.50 in six and five innings respectively. He became the first player to win Player of the Tournament awards in two consecutive T20 World Cups.
2021 was his worst year in the competition. After a decent 2022, he comes into 2024 having won the Orange Cap in IPL 2024. He has improved as an opener by playing better against spin in the middle overs and accelerating early in the powerplay. This might be the last year for him and Rohit in the competition, making it the perfect time for a comeback.
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