Highest Run-Scorers In T20Is

The sport of Cricket has evolved over years & the best thing which has ever happened in the sport is the evolution of T20 format. The shortest format of cricket has now become the limelight of the game thanks to the growth of franchise leagues all across the globe.

With Powerplay rules, fielding restrictions, and short boundaries, T20 cricket has all the elements to be a paradise for batters. And yet, simple brute force is not enough to be a successful batter in the format – you have to complement it with intelligence, creativity, fitness, and a willingness to learn and improve.

The batters included in this list of the highest run-scorer in T20Is have the ability to find the boundary at will, but it is their ability to build their innings with patience, exploit the weaknesses in opposition attacks, and maximize their advantage wherever possible that has seen them rack up high scores with remarkable consistency and climb the run-scoring charts in international cricket’s shortest format. So without wasting time let’s have a look at the Highest Run-scorers in T20Is.

Top 5 Highest Run-Scorers in T20Is

1. Virat Kohli (4008*)

Virat Kohli has combined his innate cricketing talent with his ferocious drive to succeed to become one of the most dominant batters in all three formats of international cricket. His passion for the game is evident every time he is on the field, whether he is batting or fielding. His incredible fitness levels make him an asset while fielding and have also helped him maintain razor-sharp focus and energy during many a successful run-chase. When highest run-scorers in T20Is are talked about, Virat kohli comes first on the list.

Having scored mountains of runs throughout his career, Kohli is the first, and thus far, only player to breach the 4000-run mark in T20Is. In 115 matches, Kohli has scored 4008 runs at a stunning average of 52.73 and a strike-rate of 137.96, which includes no less than 37 half-centuries and one century.

Not a natural hitter of sixes, Kohli favors fours when it comes to scoring in T20s, but retains the ability to clear the rope when the situation demands it. However, one of the secrets to his remarkable consistency in T20 cricket is his ability to find gaps in the field and keep rotating the strike via a regular accumulation of ones and twos at the start of an innings before stepping it up a notch and attempting more high-scoring shots once set. He has even taken on the mantle of opener when the team needs it and has flourished in that role as well, carting bowlers to all parts of the ground from ball one.

2. Rohit Sharma (3853*)

Rohit Sharma took some time to click in international cricket, but the wait has been well worth it. He was a fringe member of India’s T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2007 but has emerged as a bona fide star since then. A move up the order to open the batting in 2012 was the catalyst as he transformed from a talented middle-order batter to one of the most destructive batters in white-ball cricket. To add insult to injury, he does this with a lazy elegance that makes it seem like the oodles of power his strokes generate comes to him almost effortlessly.

His languid style of batting has seen him rack up 3853 runs in 148 matches at an average of 31.32 and a strike rate of 139.24, with 29 fifties and four centuries. He has also established himself as a hitter of colossal sixes, having sent 182 deliveries flying over the boundary rope in T20Is, the most of any batter in history. In recent times, he has also proved to be an astute captain, calm under pressure and aggressive when the situation demands it. Although international T20 honors have not yet materialized, he has led Mumbai Indians to five Indian Premier League titles.

3. Martin Guptill (3531*)

Third on the list of highest run-scorers in T20is is Martin Guptill. A mainstay of the New Zealand white ball set-up for over a decade, Martin Guptill is one of the most consistent scorers and cleanest strikers of the ball in T20Is. Adept at building an innings but not afraid to play his shots, he has shone in limited-overs cricket during a long and successful career. In 122 matches, Guptill has amassed 3531 runs at an average of 31.81 and a strike rate of 135.7, scoring two hundreds and 20 fifties at the top of the order. At one point in his career, he was neck-and-neck in the race to be the highest run-scorer in T20Is with the two Indian batters above him before being overhauled. Although age seems to have caught up a bit with Guptill, who now mainly features in franchise T20 cricket across the world, his impressive T20I record will definitely take some beating.

4. Babar Azam (3485*)

Despite being only 28 and having a large chunk of his career ahead of him, Babar Azam’s incredible performances on the big stage have already seen him establish himself as one of Pakistan’s greatest-ever batters. His superb technique and excellent temperament have held him in good stead in the international arena, where he has mastered all three formats as only a select few have done. He consistently ranks among the best batters in all three formats of the game, despite having the added pressure of captaincy on his shoulders. He was appointed T20I and ODI captain of Pakistan in 2019 and was awarded Test captaincy in 2021 and has not let the responsibility hamper his performances. The second-quickest batter to 1000 T20I runs, Babar has scored 3485 runs in 104 matches at an average of 41.48 and a strike rate of 128.4, with three centuries and 30 fifties. Not a big six-hitter, he relies on fours for the bulk of his scoring and backs that up with an exceptional ability to accumulate singles and doubles by stroking the ball into gaps in the field.

5. Paul Stirling (3408*)

Last but not the least, Paul Stirling comes fifth on the list of highest run-scorers Paul Stirling made his ODI debut at the age of just 17 and immediately looked at ease in white ball cricket. His portly build and strong base allow him to generate great power with minimal effort, which he does with great regularity at the top of the batting order for Ireland. A regular on the English county circuit, he has been instrumental in Ireland’s rise up the ranks in the international arena. He is exceptionally suited to the twenty-over format and has scored 3408 runs in 131 T20Is at an average of 28.72 and a strike rate of 135.89, which includes 22 fifties and a century. A prolific boundary-hitter, he also regularly chips in with useful overs of off-spin, further enhancing his value in the side.

These are top 5 highest run-scorers in t20I format. They have achieved excellence in shortest format of cricket & have plethora of runs in their kitty. If they continue to perform with same resilience & determination there are chances that they will add more runs to their kitty & continue to dominate the list of highest run-scorers in t20is.

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