Top 10 Afghanistan T20I Batters In ICC Rankings

Every year, ICC declares the player and team rankings in every format. The rankings are released for batters, bowlers, and all-rounders. For a player, seeing his name among the top cricketers in the world indeed acknowledges his hard work and potential. It is an achievement of not only the player but millions of his countrymen behind him. Please allow the privilege to present at the Top 10 Afghanistan T20I Batters in the latest ICC Rankings (as of 1 January 2022)-

1. Hazratullah Zazai

Hazratullah Zazai, the 23-year-old left-handed opening-batter from Paktia, is ranked 17^th in the ICC Rankings for T20I Batters. He achieved his career-best 5^th rank in September 2019. But he has struggled for form and consistency since and hence lost his place in the Top 10. He holds the highest individual score in a T20I match (162*) and is potent enough to be someday ranked on top of the ladder.

2. Rahmanullah Gurbaz

Wicket-keeper-top-order-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz is the first batter from Afghanistan to score a century in his ODI debut. But he is as dangerous in T20I as he is in ODI. He has risen through the ranks since his T20I debut in September 2019 and is currently placed 22^nd in the T20I rankings. In 18 T20Is he has played so far, he has scored 531 runs, with 87 being his highest score. He strikes at a healthy 139.37 runs and has three fifties to his name.

3. Mohammad Nabi

Mohammad Nabi Eisakhil is the legend of Afghanistan cricket. He made his T20I debut against Ireland back in 2010 and since has earned fame and a reputation as a dangerous batter all around the world. ICC ranks him as the 29^th best T20I batter as of now. He held the record for the most runs by a No. 7 batter in a T20I innings when he scored 89 (30) against Ireland in 2017. In 80 T20I innings, he has scored 1523 runs at the strike rate of 143.27 and has four fifties against his name.

4. Najibullah Zadran

Najibullah Zadran specializes in providing those fast-paced runs in the over 7-15 in a T20I match. His 30^th position in the ICC T20I rankings is testimony to his consistent performances. Since his T20I debut against India in 2012, he has played 59 innings and has scored 1232 runs with a strike rate of 141.28. His 3^rd-wicket stand of 107 runs with Mohammad Nabi ranks as the 3^rd highest partnership for the 5^th wicket. His best T20I knock came in T20 World Cup 2021 against New Zealand, in which he hit a fighting 48-ball-73 (6x4, 3x6).

5. Asghar Afghan

Without a doubt, Mohammad Asghar Afghan was the best captain ever for Afghanistan. He headed the rise of Afghanistan on the international stage. He made his T20I debut against Ireland in 2010. He is presently ranked 49^th in the T20I rankings. He has recorded 1382 runs in 68 T20I innings. But it is his captaincy that brings translates into his team’s success. Under him, Afghanistan has played 52 T20Is and won 42 out of them, a success rate of 81.73 %.

6. Usman Ghani

Usman Ghani had the career-best T20I ranking of 50 but has now slipped to 115^th. In 23 innings, he has recorded 551 runs at a strike rate of 111.08. But what is worth noticing is that he hasn’t got out on duck in any of those innings. His best innings came against Ireland in 2019, in which he scored a 48-ball-73. He combined with Hazratullah Zazai in a record 236-run opening-partnership in just 17.3 overs.

7. Gulbadin Naib

Gulbadin Naib currently ranks 154^th on the list. He made his T20I debut against the Netherlands in 2012 in Dubai. He had a forgettable outing, as he scored just 5 in 16 balls as an opener. In 43 innings he has played, he has scored 564 runs at a decent strike rate. His most memorable performance came against Zimbabwe in 2015 in Bulawayo. He picked up two wickets and took two catches in the first innings. Chasing 191, Gulbadin scored an unbeaten 56 to take his team over the line and win by 5 wickets with one ball to spare.

8. Najib Tarakai

Najeeb Tarakai was an aggressive opening batter who made his T20I debut against Bangladesh in 2014. He has 258 T20I runs to his name in 12 innings and is currently ranked 239^th. In a match against Ireland in 2017, he scored 90 (58) while opening to take Afghanistan to a 184/8. In the revised target, Ireland was set a target of 111 in 11 overs. Afghanistan managed to restrict Ireland at 93/9. Tarakai was given the Man of the Match.

9. Samiullah Shinwari

Samiullah Shinwari burst into the international scene as a leg-spinner handy with the bat. But with time proved his knack of scoring runs. He is ranked 256^th in the rank. He has batted in 56 T20I innings but has got out on duck just twice. He was involved with Mohammad Nabi in a 98-run 5^th-wicket partnership to bail out Afghanistan from trouble against Zimbabwe in the 2016 T20 World Cup. He also has two fifties against his name.

10. Mohammad Shahzad

It’s a shame that an explosive batter like Mohammad Shahzad is ranked 279^th. He is one of the most feared T20I batters ever and can take the game away from you in a blink. But he has struggled to score in the last year or so. He has 2015 T20I runs in 70 innings at a strike rate of 133.62. He has the record of the 2^nd-highest individual score by a wicket-keeper in an innings (118* versus Zimbabwe, Sharjah, 2016). He has a century and 12 fifties in his T20I cabinet.