The last ten years had been revolutionary in the T20 arena. Over 890 T20 International matches were played in the previous decade. With four T20 World Cups held in the period, bowlers have managed to make an impact in a format that is considered to be more batsman-friendly.
With so many bowlers around, few marked their name in history by reaching the top spot in International Cricket Council (ICC) ratings issued every year.
England’s off-spinner Graeme Swann initiated the process after claiming the highest ratings (760) in 2010. The following year was dominated by Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis, who grabbed 739 points.
Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal topped the ICC rankings in 2012. The right-armer bagged 756 points.
West Indies’ bowlers ruled the next three years. Mystery spinner Sunil Narine exhibited a great show and claimed the highest points in the years 2013 and 2015. Samuel Badri filled the year in between. He earned 831 ratings in 2014, whereas his compatriot Narine grabbed 817 in 2013 and 773 in 2015.
South Africa’s left-armer Imran Tahir had an outstanding 2016 as he rocked in the ICC ratings. Tahir earned 740 points.
Pakistan won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 and no wonder that their players ruled the charts in that year. Spinner Imad Wasim took his team to new heights as he grabbed the highest 719 ratings in T20Is that year.
A spinner from Afghanistan had single-handedly dominated the last two years. Yes, easy to guess, it’s none other than Rashid Khan.
Rashid’s magical deliveries have puzzled batsmen from various teams.
In overall T20 international records, Rashid sits at the sixth place in the leading wicket-takers. He has taken 84 wickets in 64 matches. The leg-spinner was the leader in 2018 and 2019. He claimed 793 and 749 points in the last two years.
The bowlers that finished top of the ICC T20I Rankings in the last 10 years!
Who has been your favourite to watch? pic.twitter.com/7nQOMj2vAt
— ICC (@ICC) December 30, 2019
Here’s a list of bowlers with the maximum ratings in the last decade:
- 2010 – Graeme Swann (760)
- 2011 – Ajantha Mendis(739)
- 2012 – Saeed Ajmal (756)
- 2013 – Sunil Narine (817)
- 2014 – Samuel Badri (831)
- 2015 – Sunil Narine (773)
- 2016 – Imran Tahir (740)
- 2017 – Imad Wasim (719)
- 2018 – Rashid Khan (793)
- 2019 – Rashid Khan (749)
