The T20I format gained attention after the 2007 World T20 in South Africa. India famously beat Pakistan to win the first T20 World Cup, which led to the creation of the Indian Premier League (IPL), and the rest is history. India has played 107 T20 internationals, with their first match in 2006 against South Africa at the Wanderers. The Men in Blue have won 1 T20 World Cup and were runners-up once.
Out of the 107 T20Is, India has won 69 and 2 ended with no result. The IPL has greatly contributed to the Indian team’s success in T20 cricket.
Here are the top 5 players who have played the most T20 games for India at the international level:
5. Yuvraj Singh – 58 Matches
Yuvraj Singh was a key player for India in the first World Cup, having the best strike rate among Indian players. He is famous for hitting six sixes in one over during a T20I match against England in the 2007 World Cup, with Stuart Broad being the bowler.
The all-rounder from Punjab has played 58 T20I matches, scoring 1,177 runs with an impressive strike rate of 136.38. His highest score in a match was 77. Yuvraj also took 28 wickets, with an economy rate of 7.06 over 31 innings. He last played a T20I for India in 2017 and has not been able to return to the team since then.
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4. Virat Kohli – 62 Matches
Virat Kohli leads the Indian T20I team and is one of their most experienced players in this format. He started playing T20Is in 2010 and has been crucial for India ever since. In the last three T20 World Cups, he’s been the main batsman for India.
Kohli has scored 2,102 runs for India with an average of 48.88, with his highest score being 90*. He’s also bowled in 12 T20I matches, taking 4 wickets with his medium pace. Apart from his batting and bowling skills, he’s known for his exceptional fitness and fielding abilities, having taken 32 catches in his T20I career.
3. Suresh Raina – 78 Matches
Suresh Raina played for India in its first T20 international against South Africa in 2006. He was the first Indian to hit a century in T20 international cricket, and still, no other Indian has done that in the T20 World Cup. Raina made this remarkable achievement against South Africa in the 2010 ICC World T20.
In his career, Raina has scored 1,605 runs with an average of 29.18, and his highest score is 101. He also took 13 wickets when he bowled his off-spin in 27 innings, with an economy rate of 7.59. Raina led India in 3 T20 internationals and hasn’t lost any of those matches. Among Indian captains, only Virender Sehwag shares this unbeaten record in T20 internationals.
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2. Rohit Sharma – 87 Matches
Rohit Sharma is the current vice-captain of the Indian T20I team. He’s played in all six World T20 tournaments. He helped India win the 2007 World Cup and has been a key player in the T20 team ever since. Rohit Sharma holds the record for hitting the most centuries in T20I matches, with four to his name. He also has the highest number of runs among Indian batsmen in T20Is.
In his T20I career spanning 87 matches, Rohit Sharma has scored 2,207 runs with an average of 33.43. His highest score is 118. He’s even taken one wicket in his T20I matches. Rohit has captained India in 12 T20I matches, winning 11 of them.
1. MS Dhoni – 93 Matches
Mahendra Singh Dhoni played for India in T20 cricket from 2006 to 2018. He was captain for much of that time. Under his leadership, India won the T20 World Cup in 2007. Dhoni set records for playing the most T20 matches for India, both as captain and player.
During his time as captain, Dhoni helped India develop a strong team in T20 cricket. He didn’t score many runs himself, with only 1,417 in 93 matches, but he had a good average of 37.17. Dhoni was known for his skills as a wicketkeeper. He took 54 catches and did 33 stumpings, setting records for wicketkeeping along the way.
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