3 Indian bowlers with most T20 wickets in 2021
The craze for the T20 format has grown over the years and the enthralling action of the shortest format keeps fans glued to their seats.
2021 was a big year for the shortest format. With the T20 World Cup set to be staged later in the year, most teams focused on the shortest format.
For the Indian team, the year was full of ups and downs. Despite dominating the bilateral series, the Men in Blue didn't win any major ICC trophy.
India played 16 T20Is and managed to win 10 of them while losing on six occasions. The T20 World Cup proved to be a disappointment as Team India could not get past the group stage of the tournament.
The Indian bowlers, however, had a say in the shortest format. We look at three bowlers who took the most wickets for India in 2021.
#3 Shardul Thakur (8)
Shardul Thakur has established himself as India's go-to man in crunch situations. In Hardik Pandya's absence, Thakur has established himself as an all-rounder who can scalp crucial wickets and also chip in with vital runs.
Thakur's performances also earned him a place in India's 2021 T20 World Cup squad. He played 7 T20Is last year and took eight wickets with an economy of 9.89. His best figures were 3/42 against England.
#2 Ravichandran Ashwin (9)
Ravichandran Ashwin is an important player for India in red-ball cricket. With selectors trying new bowlers for shorter formats, Ashwin has been out of action for India in white-ball cricket for many years.
However, Ashwin regained the selectors' faith with some stupendous performance in the IPL and was selected for the World Cup.
Ashwin was impressive with the ball. He took nine wickets in five T20I matches at an economy of 5.25. His best performance was 3/20 against Namibia.
#1 Bhuvneshwar Kumar (12)
Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been a mainstay for India in the bowling department. Questions over his fitness arise from time to time but the 31-year-old has always responded with his performances.
The right-arm pacer carries a lot of experience with him which helps the team in big matches. In 12 T20I matches in 2021, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar scalped 12 wickets with a good economy of 6.59. His best return was 4/ 22 runs against Sri Lanka.