Player Ratings for India in T20Is in 2016
Team India under MS Dhoni had a good year in the shortest format of the game. A 3-0 whitewash of Australia in their own backyard, Asia Cup triumph and reaching the semifinals of the 2016 World T20 were some of their achievements in this calendar year and they finished the season with 15 wins under their belt this year.
Here’s a rating for each of them:
Special Mention: KL Rahul-9
He may have played just the solitary game, but what an impact Kl Rahul made in the match, scoring an unbeaten century, which helped India almost pull off a thrilling win against the West Indies in Florida.
Batting
Shikhar Dhawan- 5
The Indian opener had yet another mixed year with the bat, scoring 301 runs in 14 matches at a strike-rate of 117. The Delhi cricketer’s high points came in the series against Sri Lanka where he recorded two half-centuries.
He also played a key role in the final of the Asia Cup, where chasing 121 runs for a win in 15 overs, he made an invaluable 60 that helped his side clinch the title after a gap of 6 years.
However, he did not have the greatest of times in the World T20I and will hope to return and strike form in the England series next month.
Rohit Sharma -7
His opening partner at the top-Rohit Sharma- had a good year with the bat, amassing 497 runs in 18 matches at a strike-rate of 131.48. Starting off the tour of Australia, the right-hander seemed in good touch,m scoring two fifties in the second and third T20I, which helped India complete the whitewash Down Under.
He returned back to the subcontinent and made a fine 83 against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup, which helped the team post a competitive total and seal the game eventually.
After a poor World T20, Rohit bounced back to form in the T20I series against West Indies in Florida, where he made 62 in the steep chase of 248. Currently recovering from injury, Rohit remains doubtful for the T20 series against England, but will hope to return sometime during 2017.
Virat Kohli-9.5
Without an iota of doubt, India’s best T20I player of 2016. From the very first T20I of the year, Kohli looked in a league of his own, smashing every bowling attack that came in his way and forming the fulcrum of the Indian batting unit.
In the 15 matches that he played in 2016, he made 641 runs at a strike rate of 140.26, which included seven half-centuries. He brought his ‘A’ game to the fore in the World T20, where he made 273 runs in 5 matches, that included half centuries in crunch encounters against Pakistan, Australia and West Indies.
He will look to carry that form into the England series starting next month.
Ajinkya Rahane-4
Rahane’s development as a limited-overs cricketer continued on in 2016 as he once could not set the field ablaze, scoring a mere 102 runs in the 5 matches that he featured in. A majority of those games came in the short series against Sri Lanka before the Asia Cup and the World T20.
He will look to get a lot more chances in the upcoming year and further look to enhance his reputation as a limited-overs player for India.
Suresh Raina-4
Perhaps the biggest disappointment in the middle-order was Raina. After being dropped for the ODI leg of the tour to Australia, he returned to the T20I side and made an impact in the final game in Sydney, where he made an unbeaten 49 that helped the Men In Blue, complete a 3-0 whitewash over Australia.
However, things began to go downhill for him soon enough as he failed to deliver in big ticket events like the World T20 and was dropped for the tour to Zimbabwe and also for the series against West Indies in Florida.
He will hope to return in a rejuvenated form for the 2017 season and hope to show some of his past form again.
MS Dhoni-6
MS Dhoni’s record in 2016 can be judged based on two factors- Dhoni the batsman and Dhoni the captain.
The former had very little to do with the bat, but did make some key contributions like in the Asia Cup final, the World T20 group game against Australia and also in the T20I against the West Indies in Florida. He mustered 238 runs in 21 matches at a strike-rate of 149.89.
Dhoni the captain, though had a much more fruitful year. A series win in Australia, Asia Cup triumph, making it to the semifinals of the World T20 and a series win in Zimbabwe meant that India finished with a win% of 71.
He will be back next month to lead India in the limited-overs series against England and will look to start the year off on a winning note.
Yuvraj Singh-4
After a string of fine performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali competition, Yuvraj Singh was recalled to the Indian T20I setup for the tour of Australia and made an impact in the final game, helping India whitewash Australia with some last over heroics with the bat.
However, like was the case with Raina, that was the last piece of action that the southpaw provided with the bat as he had an average outing in each of the remaining series.
He finished the year with 166 runs in 15 matches and will hope to get back into the side once again in 2017.