The greatest T20 batsman

Can we pick the greatest T20 batsman among the current crop of players in internationals?

Dawid Malan, Babar Azam, and Virat Kohli are the three currently playing batters in T20 format who have the highest averages and played more than 15 games. Each of them has played a pivotal role in the success of his team along with the achievement of some intriguing numbers and statistics.

Also, Read – England’s Top 5 Best T20 Batsmen Of All-Time

But who is the greatest T20 batsman between the three?

The brilliant Babar Azam

Babar Azam scores a half-century for Pakistan v England. — MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – AUGUST 30: Babar Azam of Pakistan celebrates reaching fifty during the 2nd Vitality International Twenty20 match between England and Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford on August 30, 2020 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

Pakistan remained on the top spot for 27 months in the ICC T20 rankings for teams thanks to the brilliance of Babar Azam who featured as opener in T20 format, and is currently scoring at the rate of about 50 runs per innings. Australia recently dethroned Pakistan of their top position, and is currently occupying the 1st spot in the ICC T20 rankings. Babar continues to be the star among the Pakistani batsman.

“Confident our team will do well in T20 World Cup.” says Babar Azam

He plays the role of the anchor at the top of the order and ensures that Pakistan very rarely collapse – a feature which is much needed in such a fickle format. He can accelerate if need be as well.

Also, Read – How Important is Shaheen Shah Afridi for Pakistan Cricket

Virat Kohli – The Chase Master

Virat Kohli is perhaps the greatest T20 batsman in the world. — India’s Virat Kohli raises his bat celebrates after scoring a half-century (50 runs)during the World T20 men’s semi-final match between India and West Indies at The Wankhede Cricket Stadium in Mumbai on March 31, 2016. / AFP / INDRANIL MUKHERJEE (Photo credit should read INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty Images)

Virat Kohli, famous for his chasing abilities, is currently poised at rank nine in the ICC T20 batsman category. He averages more than 50 runs per innings. Also, he is the highest run scorer among the greatest T20 batsman in the format. He has scored 2794 runs in his 82 matches.

RCB’s Chris Morris labels Virat Kohli “a genius”

Kohli has almost the perfect game for T20 Cricket. He perfectly guns down totals while chasing and can also start slowly if batting first and then accelerate rapidly towards the end of the innings. His consistency is very impressive.

Is he the greatest T20 batsman?

Dawid Malan – The rising superstar

Dawid Malan is the greatest T20 batsman according to the ICC rankings. — SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 06: Dawid Malan of England(L) plays a shot as Alex Carey of Australia(R) looks on during the 2nd Vitality International Twenty20 match between England and Australia at The Ageas Bowl on September 06, 2020 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images for ECB)

Dawid Malan from nowhere has shaken the T20 world in only 16 games he played for England. He now has surpassed Babar Azam to become the number 1 ranked T20 batsman after his scintillating performance against Australia during the recent home series. England with a relatively inexperienced side (no Ben Stokes), still came out to be the winners and defeated Australia by 2-1.

Dawid Malan reaches the summit

Despite just playing 16 games, Dawid Malan has done enough to rank among the best T20 batsman in the world due to his weight of runs and his match-winning ability. He continues to keep Joe Root – the best batsman in England out of the T20 side. This is no mean feat.

Statistics

To see how close this battle has been in actual among the three greats of T20, we look into the following statistics about the greatest T20 batsman.

Key highlights from the statistics

The following are the key highlights from the stats above about the greatest T20 batsman.

Not out percentage of Virat Kohli is staggering. Out of his 76 innings in 86 games, he remained not out 21 times. Whereas Babar Azam remained not out 9 times in his 40 innings out of 41 games he played.
Dawid Malan has the highest strike rate among the three, so is his average number of boundaries per match.
Dawid Malan has not been dismissed through LBW or Bowled yet in his 16 games.
Virat Kohli averages more than 50 run per match even after 82 games.
The percentage dismissal through catches in T20 games for these batsman have been prominently high.
Babar Azam’s six hitting ability is the lowest among the three.
Dawid Malan has hit the only century among the three.

Babar Azam is one of the greatest T20 batsman in the world. — CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 05: Babar Azam of Pakistan bats during game two of the International Twenty20 series between Australia and Pakistan at Manuka Oval on November 05, 2019 in Canberra, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

While Babar Azam captains his side in limited-overs formats, and Virat Kohli in all the three formats, David Malan is still trying to make his name in one-days and Test cricket. Nevertheless, all of these three batters are well established in T20s. It would interesting to see as this competition matures and unfolds. It is difficult to pinpoint who is the greatest T20 batsman among the three.

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