Cricket has undoubtedly been on the rise due to T20 cricket’s meteoric pust to fame as it has made the game more entertaining and less time-consuming. It has undoubtedly brought many new cricket fans as well, for players like Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, Lasith Malinga, Yuvraj Singh, and many more. Now, with the increase in franchise leagues all over the world and the T20 World Cup happening after skipping just a year, it is surely the format of the game, at least for the youth.
And who better than the batters of the game in making the format so thrill-seeking. Indian cricketers have most significantly contributed through this thrill-seeking experience with the most famous franchise league, IPL, and their formidable T20i side.
- Virat Kohli
The closest thing to Sachin Tendulkar, as we all believe, is the man who’ll likely surpass Sachin at the end of his career. Virat Kohli has a plethora of T20 glorious innings to his name. The king of the run chase had some stellar performances throughout the year, even when he was off-form. Virat Kohli, who I believe is the greatest batsman there has ever lived, is quite arguably one of the most incredible T20 batters of all time, not just among the Indians.
I can recall his innings against Pakistan at the MCG in the T20 World Cup 2022, where he made India win the match out of nothing. That Six of off Haris Rauf over his head was the absolute highlight of the match. Only someone who is in the GOAT tier can hit a six of an express fast bowler over his head, and that too on a short ball.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 117 | 109 | 4037 | 122* | 51.8 | 2922 | 138.2 | 1 | 37 |
| IPL | 237 | 229 | 7263 | 113 | 37.2 | 5586 | 130 | 7 | 50 |
- Rohit Sharma
Sachin Tendulkar named two players when asked who would be their successors. One was Virat Kohli, and the other was Rohit Sharma. Known as the Hitman for doing the job throughout all his sides in all formats, you will hardly see Rohit not turning 50s into 100s. In modern-day cricket, there isn’t a better puller of the ball than Rohit Sharma, and that is what we have witnessed throughout all these years from him.
Rohit has many blistering knocks for India and the Mumbai Indians. He has an astonishing five hundred in the T20is, the most recent coming against Afghanistan in their last series. His memorable T20i innings, which I witnessed, was his first T2Oi hundred scored against SA at Dharamshala.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 151 | 143 | 3974 | 121* | 31.8 | 2839 | 140 | 5 | 29 |
| IPL | 243 | 238 | 6211 | 109* | 29.6 | 4776 | 130 | 1 | 42 |
- Suryakumar Yadav
The AB Devilliers of India or should I say the Mr. 360 of India or SKY as many call him, he is none other than Suryakumar Yadav. SKY, ever since his KKR days, he has been an underrated, silent, consistent performer who packed a punch and played quick cameos when the team needed him. During the last 3-4 years, he has been in headlines through his many blistering knocks for Mumbai Indians that led him to the selection for the men in blues. And, he has rightfully delivered for Team India.
It is quite sensational that Suryakumar Yadav, having played IPL more, has only one hundred, whereas for team India, he already has four hundred in just 60 matches. Currently sitting at the number one spot at the ICC Men’s T20 Batter Rankings, Surya is deserving of the number 3 spot in the all-time list as he already has the stat and is continuing to perform.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 60 | 57 | 2141 | 117 | 45.5 | 1248 | 171.6 | 4 | 17 |
| IPL | 139 | 124 | 3249 | 103* | 31.9 | 2267 | 143.3 | 1 | 21 |
- Yuvraj Singh
I’m sure even the ones who do not follow cricket remember Yuvi’s then-fastest 50 in the T2OIs and, of course, his six sixes off Stuart Broad’s over in 6 consecutive deliveries. Now a few have done it, but none did it as monumentally as Yuvi. Yuvi has always been a revelation for his various IPL sides and for Team India. Not just with the bat but with the ball as well. If it were not for the cancer, he would’ve seen plenty of Yuvraj Singh.
His 60-odd runs against Australia during the 2012 T20 World Cup were one of his more impressive knocks against a strong bowling unit that was favoring swing and spin at the same time. Also, in IPL, Yuvi was instrumental when he won the IPL with Sunrisers under David Warner’s leadership.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 58 | 51 | 1177 | 77* | 28 | 863 | 136.4 | 0 | 8 |
| IPL | 132 | 126 | 2750 | 83 | 24.8 | 2120 | 129.7 | 0 | 13 |
- MS Dhoni
The captain cool, the captain charismatic Mahander Singh Dhoni has won it all as a captain for all of his teams. And, if you look at his stats, you can only wonder how a player that bats at 5-7 down the order has such astonishing stats. It is to my wonder that if Dhoni had batted up the order, he could’ve had an even better stat and average, which already is better than most great players.
MS Dhoni, who is known for finishing games by taking them at the very last ball through his helicopter shots, has also had various crucial innings where he carried his team all by himself. We all remember his 2007 T20 World Cup tenure where he led the team India to winning the World Cup. And, of course, every year you see CSK either getting close to winning IPL or winning it. The streets fondly remember his colossal 61 runs off just 19 deliveries against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the CLT20, 2023.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 98 | 85 | 1617 | 56 | 37.6 | 1282 | 126.1 | 0 | 2 |
| IPL | 250 | 218 | 5082 | 84* | 38.8 | 3739 | 135.9 | 0 | 24 |
- KL Rahul
One of my favorite players right now and someone whose criticism feels like a mystery given how consistent he is through his cricketing career and continuing, is it for sure KL Rahul. If you’re following cricket regularly, you will hardly see him fail in an inning and if you check among the run-getters in a tournament, there’s a huge possibility that he will be among the top run-getters. If there was someone who’d immediately take the throne from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as the main man of Team India, it is KL Rahul which we are witnessing right now.
From 2018 to 2022, Lokesh Rahul has been scoring over 550 runs per season, 4 of which he scored over 600 runs. Even though his average at T20is is sensational, it still feels less considering how often he performs for the men in blues. As proceeds on, we will surely see him increasing his average both in T2Ois and IPL.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 72 | 68 | 2265 | 110* | 37.8 | 1627 | 140 | 2 | 29 |
| IPL | 118 | 109 | 4163 | 132* | 46.8 | 3097 | 134 | 4 | 33 |
- Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina to me is a cult classic when it comes to T2O formats, he was one of the first players to set the format a blaze with his consistent knocks both for India and for Csk. Chinna Thala as the fans call him, he has the most consecutive matches for a side in T20 format which is a nerve-wracking 158 matches. His classical yet destructive batting was a treat to watch. Pairing up with the likes of Mike Hussey or MSD, the great man has many match-winning knocks for CSK and involvement in 4 titles with CSK along with the 2007 T20 World Cup.
Raina’s 101 against South Africa at the 2010 World Cup is one of his all-time greatest innings and makes him a formidable number 7 on the list.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 78 | 66 | 1605 | 101 | 29.2 | 1190 | 134.9 | 1 | 5 |
| IPL | 230 | 207 | 6126 | *100 | 34.8 | 4417 | 138.8 | 1 | 39 |
- Gautam Gambhir
A bonafide legend of the game with an inspiring cricketing brain, not to mention the underrated starts of Indian Cricket throughout all formats, the name is Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir, while he may not have the most explosive innings in the format, surely remains instrumental for his side, especially as a contributing player when you recall the 2007 T2O World Cup. Indian T20 World Cup would have never existed if he hadn’t scored that 75 against Pakistan in the finals.
Gambhir throughout his IPL has also been a consistent performer and has been one of the all-time great openers of the league. Gautam Gambhir was extremely impactful with the bat during the 2012 and 2014 campaigns for KKR when they won the IPL.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 37 | 36 | 932 | 75 | 27.4 | 783 | 119 | 0 | 7 |
| IPL | 154 | 152 | 4217 | 93 | 31 | 3404 | 123.9 | 0 | 36 |
- Shreyas Iyer
One of the most consistent batters India currently has for the foreseeable future is Shreyas Iyer. Just like Lokesh Rahul, you may see him follow in similar footsteps in taking the mantle from Kohli and Sharma as he doesn’t seem to stop performing. It was a shame that we missed out on him during the IPL as he was injured, but this season he is back as the skipper of KKR. At 51 matches he already has over 1000 runs in the T20Is and you should not be surprised if you seem among the top run-getters this season in the IPL with a few hundred at the back of his name.
His 88 against his current team KKR was one of the most colossal hits you’ll ever see in a T20 game which rightfully places him at number 9, looking to push further up in the future.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 51 | 47 | 1104 | 74* | 30.7 | 811 | 136.1 | 0 | 8 |
| IPL | 101 | 101 | 2776 | 96 | 31.5 | 2214 | 125.4 | 0 | 19 |
- Rishab Pant
If you regard MSD as an Unorthodox batter, then you probably haven’t seen Rishab Pant. Wildly regarded as someone who’ll likely replace Dhoni as the team’s main Wicket-keeper batsman, we can only hope that Rishab has now fully recovered from that horrific accident so that we can look forward to seeing his guns blazing for the Delhi Capitals this season. India’s struggle to find a proper wicketkeeper-batsman apart from KL Rahul has been something that has been in conversations for quite some time now. Before Rishab’s accident, he was a consistent member of the men in blues in all forms of the game.
Rishab’s 128 against SRH playing for Delhi Capitals has to be one of the greatest IPL knocks ever and puts him at number 10. We can only hope that Rishab has a glorious IPL season and grants him a spot in the T20 World Cup.
| Format | M | Inn | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100s | 50s |
| T20I | 66 | 56 | 987 | 65* | 22.4 | 781 | 126.4 | 0 | 3 |
| IPL | 98 | 97 | 2838 | *128 | 34.6 | 1918 | 148 | 1 | 15 |
Players who will breach this list in the future
Now that we have spoken about the players who are the greatest T20 batters for India. Very soon 3-4 years down the line, we will see a few other players who will likely breach this list. The first player I can think of is Shubman Gill, who is the heir to Virat Kohli as they say, then another inevitable greatness will come from Ishan Kishan. Rinku Singh is someone from the future, whose aggressive approach and batting aura are actually quite reminiscent of Suresh Raina. Openers like Ruturaj Gaikwad or Yashasvi Jaiswal, even someone like Sanju Samson can also be on this list. These players may be among the top 10 batters but in search of utmost greatness, it will be quite a spectacle if any of them is in the top 3 in the list.
To Conclude!
India’s T20 cricket landscape has been graced with an outstanding array of batters, led by the legendary Virat Kohli and the ‘Hitman’ Rohit Sharma. Suryakumar Yadav is frequently compared to the versatile AB de Villiers as the 360-degree batter of India. Yuvraj Singh’s unprecedented six-sixes feat and MS Dhoni’s renowned finishing abilities add to India’s T20 reputation.
KL Rahul’s consistent consistency, Suresh Raina’s combination of classical and destructive batting, and Gautam Gambhir’s strategic prowess cement their places among the T20 elites. Not to mention the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant, two developing talents, round out the top ten, symbolizing Indian cricket’s bright future. Looking ahead, young players like Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Rinku Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Sanju Samson are set to rise. These rising stars are primed to carve their names into this elite list, ensuring India’s long-term dominance in the fast-paced world of T20 cricket.
