Over time, India has produced players who have achieved almost everything cricket has to offer. There are various awards to acknowledge the achievements of sportspersons, such as the Khel Ratna, which is the highest sporting honour in India, and the Arjuna Award for outstanding performance in sports. India also has cricketers who aced other walks of life, too. There are many players who are awarded honorary positions by the Government of India. This article is all about those players who achieved almost everything, and even more than they dreamed, and made the nation proud through their achievements. We will look into the Top 10 Most Celebrated Indian Cricketers.
1. Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar is the only cricketer to score a hundred centuries. He is the only sportsperson to receive the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India, for his excellent services in the field of cricket. Famous as the “God of Cricket” in India, Tendulkar won the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup and was awarded the Player of the Tournament Award in the 2003 World Cup. Sachin won the IPL in 2013. Tendulkar was awarded the Arjuna Award in 1994, the Khel Ratna in 1997, the Padma Shri in 1999, the Padma Vibhushan in 2001 and, the Bharat Ratna in 2014. In 2012, he received the Honorary Member of the Order of Australia from the Australian Government. He was named the Wisden Leading Cricketer of the World in 1998 and 2010, and Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1997.
2. Mahendra Singh Dhoni
He is one of the greatest cricketers that India has ever produced, the best Indian wicket-keeper of all time with hands as quick as lightning behind the wickets, and the most decorated Indian captain. No one can ever forget how he finished the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup with a six into the stands. MS Dhoni is the only captain to win all three major ICC Trophies- the T20 World Cup in 2007, the ODI World Cup in 2011, and the Champions Trophy in 2013. Not only in international cricket, MSD is well-decorated in the IPL; he has led Chennai Super Kings to five IPL Titles. Off the field, he was awarded the rank of Lieutenant Colonel with the Indian Territorial Army in 2011. He received the Padma Shri in 2009 and the Padma Bhushan in 2018. MSD was awarded the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award in 2008 and 2009.
3. Virat Kohli
The most aggressive and passionate Indian cricketer and the most determined and dedicated player India witnessed after the great Sachin Tendulkar. Virat Kohli has various records to his name. Kohli won the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2013, the Padma Shri in 2017, and the Khel Ratna Award in 2018. He won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for being ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Decade (2011-2020), was awarded the ICC Cricketer of the Year award in 2017 and 2018, won the Wisden Leading Cricketer of the World three times, and Polly Umrigar Award for International Cricketer of the Year five times.
4. Kapil Dev
The cricketer who led India to its first World Cup in 1983! He received the Arjuna Award in 1979, the Padma Shri in 1982, and the Padma Bhushan in 1991. He was named the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1983 and Wisden Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002. He was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2010 and received CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. He was honoured with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel with the India Territorial Army in 2008. He is the only player with 5,000 Test runs and 400 Test wickets.
5. Rahul Dravid
The Wall of Indian Cricket Rahul Dravid won the Arjuna Award in 1998, the Padma Shri in 2004, and the Padma Bhushan in 2013. He was named the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2000, the ICC Cricketer of the Year, and the ICC Test Player of the Year in 2004. He received the Don Bradman Award in 2012. He was named Wisden India’s Highest Impact Test Batsman in 2015. Rahul Dravid was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2018.
6. Virender Sehwag
One of the best batters in India, Virender Sehwag, was awarded the Arjun Award in 2002, he received the Polly Umrigar Award for International Cricketer of the Year in 2007. He won the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup. He received the Padma Shri in 2010 and the ICC Test Player of the Year in 2010. He was named the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World in 2008 and 2009. He also holds the record for being the first Indian to score a triple century in Test cricket and scoring the fastest triple century in Test for which he took 278 balls.
7. Yuvraj Singh
He is an amazingly talented player who hit six sixes in an over. Yuvraj Singh won the 2007 ICC T20 World Cup and the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup. He received the Arjuna Award in 2012 and the Padma Shri in 2014. He is a two-time IPL champion, first with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016 and the second with Mumbai Indians in 2019.
8. Gautam Gambhir
He won the 2007 ICC T20 World Cup and the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup. Gautam Gambhir was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2008 and the Padma Shri in 2019. He led Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title twice in 2012 and 2014.
9. VVS Laxman
VVS Laxman was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2001 and the Padma Shri in 2011. He was named the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2002. His Test inning of 281 runs against Australia in 2001 was ranked sixth in the list of 100 great Test innings of all time. He holds other records, such as the most catches by a non-wicket-keeper in a single ODI series. He was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by Teri University in 2015.
10. Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble was shortlisted for the Wisden Indian Cricketer of the 20th Century. He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 1995 and the Padma Shri in 2005. He was named the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1996. Anil Kumble was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2015. That’s the end of the list of the Top 10 Most Celebrated Indian Cricketers; it mentions some of the most awarded and honoured cricketers of India.
