A lot of T20I cricket was played in the calendar year 2024. The primary reason behind this was the T20 World Cup, which was co-hosted by the West Indies and the USA in June. Cricket aficionados witnessed some exhilarating action during the year in the shortest format of the game. In the last 12 months, CricTracker has minutely followed the performances of the players.
Here’s the list of the best Test XI of the year:
1. Rohit Sharma (Captain / India)
Rohit Sharma drew the curtains on his illustrious T20I career in June. This was after he had led India to the T20 World Cup title. Rohit gave India some whirlwind starts during the marquee event and finished as the second-highest run-getter behind Rahmanullah Gurbaz. He played 11 T20Is this year and scored 378 runs at an average of 42 and a strike rate of 160.16. The 37-year-old registered three half-centuries and a solitary ton in 2024.
2. Travis Head (Australia)
Travis Head finally got a consistent run in Australia’s T20 team this year and he didn’t disappoint. The southpaw amassed 539 runs from 15 T20Is at an average of 38.50. Head is known for his ability to take the best bowlers in world cricket to the cleaners on his day. This is validated by his awe-inspiring strike rate of 178.47 in 2024. The 31-year-old finished as the third-highest run-scorer in the T20 World Cup. He notched up four half-centuries during the year.
3. Sanju Samson (Wicketkeeper / India)
Like Head, Sanju Samson also got abundant opportunities to showcase his talent at the international level this year after being a ‘fringe player’ for a long time. The wicketkeeper-batter was a part of India’s squad for the T20 World Cup. However, he didn’t get a game as the Men in Blue backed Rishabh Pant, even after the southpaw had some disappointing performances in the latter half of the tournament. Samson finally got his chances after Gautam Gambhir joined as the head coach. In 12 innings, he amassed 436 runs at an average of 43.60 and a strike rate of 180.16. He smashed three tons and a solitary half-century to end the year on a high.
4. Nicholas Pooran (West Indies)
Former West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran produced some fine performances in the shortest format in 2024. In 20 T20I innings, he scored 464 runs at an average of 25.77 and a strike rate of 142.33. He registered two half-centuries, including a highest score of 98 off 53 balls against eventual semi-finalists Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup.
5. Marcus Stoinis (Australia)
Star Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis has always been a force to reckon with as a batter in T20 cricket. However, 2024 turned out to be his best year with the ball. In 17 matches, he took 21 wickets at an average of 17. Meanwhile, with the bat, the 35-year-old smashed 330 runs from 14 innings at an average of 36.66 and a strike rate of 156.39.
6. Hardik Pandya (India)
Hardik Pandya came back from an ankle injury during the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this year, but had a forgettable season with bat and ball and also as the skipper of the Mumbai Indians, who finished last. He also received a lot of hatred after he had replaced Rohit Sharma as the captain of the five-time IPL-winning franchise. However, the Baroda all-rounder won the hearts of cricket enthusiasts with his consistent performance during the T20 World Cup. He played a major role in the title-winning campaign. Hardik scored 352 runs and 16 wickets in the year after playing 17 T20Is.
7. Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
Rashid Khan continued to mesmerise the cricket fraternity with his surreal talent in 2024. Apart from bowling some match-winning spells, Rashid led Afghanistan to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. This was the Blue Tigers’ first appearance in the semi-finals of an ICC event. The talismanic all-rounder had his most productive year with the ball, picking up 31 wickets from 14 matches at a mind-boggling average of 9.58. However, he couldn’t make much of an impression with the bat.
8. Jasprit Bumrah (India)
Jasprit Bumrah won the Player of the Tournament award in the T20 World Cup. In eight T20Is, the ace speedster picked up 15 wickets at a stunning average of 8.26. His economy rate during the tournament was just 4.17, which is excellent even by ODI standards. Bumrah didn’t play any T20I match outside the World Cup. He finished as the joint-second-highest wicket-taker in the global event.
9. Arshdeep Singh (India)
Arshdeep Singh was the joint-highest wicket-taker in the T20 World Cup 2024. He was nominated for the Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award by the International Cricket Council (ICC) earlier this month. The Punjab pacer is also the highest wicket-taker of the year in T20Is among Test-playing nations, with 36 scalps from 18 matches at an average of 13.50 and an economy rate of 7.49.
10. Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)
Shaheen Afridi might have lost his place in the Test side, but he remains Pakistan’s spearhead in the white-ball formats. In 2024, he accounted for 36 wickets from 23 T20Is at an average of 18.58 and a strike rate of 13.60. He conceded runs at an economy rate of 8.14, which is decent for someone who bowls in the powerplay and also at the death.
11. Adam Zampa (Australia)
Adam Zampa is one of the most consistent leg-spinners in white-ball cricket, and his longevity accentuates the same. He continues to produce match-winning spells for the Men in Yellow by intelligently using the tricks in his repertoire. This year, the experienced campaigner picked up 35 wickets from 21 matches at an average of 17.20 and a strike rate of 13.30. No other spinner from a full-member nation apart from Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga picked up more T20I wickets than Zampa in 2024.
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