The T20I World Cup 2024 is scheduled to take place in the upcoming year. While 2023 predominantly emphasized ODI cricket, given the focus on the ODI World Cup, there were numerous thrilling T20I matches throughout the year. Teams such as Namibia and Uganda secured their spots for the T20I World Cup through outstanding performances in the qualifiers.
For the top cricketing teams also this year was a preparatory year considering the major event scheduled in 2024. In the realm of T20Is, Bangladesh had a successful year, securing victories in 10 matches and facing defeat in two. The T20 world champions, England experienced a challenging year, managing four wins but succumbing to eight losses. India engaged in 23 T20I matches, emerging triumphant in 15 and conceding seven defeats.
New Zealand registered nine victories and encountered eight losses. Pakistan achieved four wins but faced an equal number of defeats. South Africa had a lacklustre T20 year, winning two matches and suffering six losses, while Sri Lanka endured a disastrous year, losing five matches and securing only one win. West Indies had a reasonably good year in T20Is, winning eight and losing five.
Let us look at top performers from these Teams who made it to the T20I squad;
Top Order
The openers for the team will be the dynamic duo of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Phil Salt. Yashasvi played 14 innings, amassing 430 runs with an average of 33.07. He had a strike rate of 159.25 and even scored one century and three fifties. Jaiswal’s notable innings include an unbeaten 84 against West Indies, a century against Nepal, and his valuable contributions against Australia and South Africa. On the other hand, England’s Phil Salt showed a stellar T20I performance in 2023 with 394 runs at an average of 56.28. The star opener hit back to two centuries against West Indies earlier this month.
The number three spot would be taken by skipper Suryakumar Yadav. Suryakumar had a remarkable performance this year as he scored 733 runs in 17 innings. The number ranked T20I batter scored runs at an average of 48.86 and a striking rate of 155.95. He even hit two centuries and five half-centuries. His top innings includes an unbeaten 112 against Sri Lanka and a century against South Africa.
Middle Order
The number four position will be slotted in by Mitchell Marsh. Marsh showed his T20 prowess in 2023. He played just three innings and scored an impressive 186 runs at an extraordinary strike rate of 186. His remarkable performances included a spectacular unbeaten 92 off 49 balls against South Africa in Durban. Later, he played another stellar innings of 79 not out off 39 balls against the same opponent at the same venue.
The five positions will be taken by Rinku Singh. The year 2023 not only helped him gain significant attention in the Indian Premier League (IPL) but also marked his international debut for India. The left-handed batter played in 12 matches following his debut. He had scored an impressive 262 runs in 8 innings. Remarkably, Rinku remained unbeaten in 4 matches, maintaining a striking rate of over 180 while batting. Additionally, he achieved the milestone of scoring a half-century in his international career.
The number six position will be taken in by star all-rounder, Glenn Maxwell. Australia’s Glenn Maxwell secures the all-rounder position in the T20I team of the year. Maxwell participated in just two matches in the format during 2023, delivering a powerful performance by scoring an unbeaten 104 off 48 balls against India in Guwahati. His hard-hitting innings comprised eight fours and an impressive number of sixes.
All-rounder and Bowler
The number seven slot will be taken by Rovman Powell. Having featured in 13 matches this year, he amassed 324 runs with an average of 36. The right-handed batter also registered a fifty in his innings and maintained a striking rate exceeding 170 while at the crease. The number eight will be slotted in by Ravi Bishnoi. The right-arm spinner secured 18 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 17.61. He has even maintained an economy rate of just 7.20. Bishnoi’s outstanding performance in the T20I series against Australia in November earned him the Player of the Series award.
The number nine, tenth and eleven slots will be taken in by Rashid Khan, Jason Behrendorff and Arshdeep Singh. Rashid has been legendary in the shortest format of the game. Rauf achieved 11 wickets in five matches. He has displayed an average of 13.63 and an economy rate of 7.75 including two instances of taking four wickets in a match. The left-arm pacer secured 26 wickets in 21 games, emerging as India’s leading wicket-taker. He maintained an average of 24.46 and had an economy rate of 9.26.
