The T20I format of cricket has gained incredible fan-following in the last ten years. Apart from international cricket, even T20 leagues have become quite popular in the cricketing circles. The batsmen have dominated this format. The reason being the innings last for only 20 overs. So, they need to take calculated risks at regular intervals.
Bowlers have fought their way back in this form. They have used new variations, new styles to perplex the batsmen. Still, one can say that T20 is a 60-40 favouring the batsmen. It is a tough job for any bowler to perform well consistently in T20Is. In this article, we will have a look at the top five Indian bowlers on the year-end ICC T20I Rankings since 2016.
2016 – Jasprit Bumrah
Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah made his T20I debut in 2016. He quickly became one of the top bowlers in the world. Bumrah got to play 21 T20Is for the Indian cricket team in 2016. He picked up 28 wickets for the country in those games. His economy rate was 6.63 in his first year as a T20I player.
Bumrah rose to the 2nd position on the ICC T20I Rankings that year. Imran Tahir ended the year as the world no. 1 T20I bowler. Bumrah followed him with 735 rating points. Ravichandran Ashwin was the other Indian bowler in the Top 10. But Bumrah was ranked above him.
2017 – Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah continued his fine form in T20Is in 2017. He played 11 T20is for the country and bowled 34.4 overs. In those outings, Jasprit picked up 12 wickets. His economy rate increased a bit but it was still under 7. Also, his bowling strike rate went up from 17.04 to 17.33.
There was a minor difference in his performances of 2016 and 2017. Hence, Bumrah slipped out of the Top 2. He ended 2017 at the third position on the ICC T20I Rankings. Imad Wasim and Rashid Khan ended 2017 above him. No other Indian bowler made it to the Top 10.
2018 – Kuldeep Yadav
Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal replaced Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin in the Indian team after the Champions Trophy. The two wrist-spinners made an instant impact. Yadav was much more successful in T20Is. In the year 2018, Kuldeep played nine T20Is for India. In those nine games, he scalped 21 wickets.
Kuldeep recorded his best figures of 5/24 in that year. His economy rate was less than six. Many feel MS Dhoni was the reason behind his success. Yadav ended at the third position on the ICC T20I Rankings in 2018. Rashid Khan and Shadab Khan were the Top 2 bowlers.
2019 – Washington Sundar
The Indian T20I team experimented a lot in 2019. Keeping the two T20 World Cups in mind, India tried some new players. Washington Sundar received the longer rope as he played 11 T20Is for India. In those 11 games, he took five wickets. His economy rate of 7.09 helped him rise in the rankings.
Unfortunately, no Indian bowler could finish in the Top 10 that year. Sundar was the no. 1 Indian bowler placed at the 14th rank. He had 599 rating points in 2019. It is pertinent to note Sundar’s performance was much better in 2018. Still, he achieved the feat of becoming the highest-ranked Indian bowler in T20Is in 2019.
2020 – Washington Sundar
Like Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar accomplished the feat of being the number one Indian T20I bowler on the rankings for two consecutive years. After 2019, Sundar finished 2020 as the top Indian bowler. This time, he held the 12th position. Washington played eight T20Is in 2020. He picked up six wickets for the Men in Blue.
His economy rate shot up to 7.80. Still, it was much better than the others. There were not many changes in the rankings this year because of the COVID-19 break. Sundar gained two spots before the year ended. It will be interesting to see if he can complete a hat-trick next year. Also, he will be key to India’s success in the T20 World Cup.
