T20 World Cup 2022: India's best player from each edition
While the first round of the T20 World Cup 22 commenced on October 16, India will start their Super 12 campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday, October 23.
India have won the marquee tournament just once, in the inaugural edition in South Africa in 2007. Since then, they have made it to the final only once in 2014, losing to Sri Lanka. The Men in Blue have also made a solitary appearance in the semi-finals in 2016, losing to eventual champions West Indies.
In the last edition in the UAE in 2021, India were knocked out of the group stage.
On that note, let’s take a look at India's best performers from each edition of the T20 World Cup.
#1 2007 - Yuvraj Singh
On this day in 2007: Yuvraj smashed 6 sixes in an over in T20 WC
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The 2007 T20 World Cup victory was special for Indian cricket, and former all-rounder Yuvraj Singh played a pivotal role behind the triumph. He smashed 148 runs in five innings at a mind-boggling strike rate of 195.
The southpaw played two memorable knocks in the tournament. He scored the fastest T20 fifty till date (12 balls) against England, hitting Stuart Broad for six sixes in an over.
He followed it up with a clutch 70*(30) against the mighty Australian side in the all-important semi-final after India were reduced to 41/2 in eight overs, batting first at Kingsmead in Durban.
#2 2009 - Yuvraj Singh
India had a bad T20 World Cup as they crashed out of the Super 8 stage, losing all three matches. However, Yuvraj's performance gave the team a glitter of hope. He scored 153 runs in five matches at an average of 38 and a strike rate of 155.
The all-rounder scored some vital runs for the team against West Indies (67 off 43 balls) and Bangladesh (41 off 18 balls).
#3 2010 - Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina turned out to be the best batter for Team India at the 2010 T20 World Cup. He has scored 219 runs in five matches at an average of 44 and a strike rate of 146.
Raina became the first Indian batter to score a hundred in the T20 World Cup (and T20Is) against South Africa. He scored 101 runs off 60 deliveries, ensuring a 14 run win for team India. He also scored a vital 63 (47) against Sri Lanka, batting first.
However, it was yet another disappointment in the T20 World Cup for the Men in Blue.
#4 2012 - Yuvraj Singh
The 2012 edition was not the first time the all-rounder turned out to be the best player for Team India in a T20 World Cup. This time, Yuvraj's bowling made a significant impact. He took eight wickets in five matches at an economy rate of 5.92.
The left arm spinner's best performance with the ball came against Afghanistan, returning with figures of 3/24 in four overs. He followed it up with economic spells versus Pakistan (2/16 in three overs) and South Africa (2/23 in four overs in a must-win game).
India won four out of their five matches in the tournament. Despite that, they failed to make it to the semi-finals. The loss against Australia dented the team's net run rate significantly.
#5 2014 - Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli was the star of the 2014 T20 World Cup for the India. He scored 319 runs at an average of 106.33 and a strike rate of 129. The relatively low strike rate came as a result of match situations, which he assessed perfectly in most games.
Kohli brought forward his best performances in the biggest games. He scored 72*(44) in the semi-final against South Africa, helping India chase down a target of more than 170.
He then followed it up with a 77 (58) in the all-important final, where he barely got any support from the rest of the batting. India lost to Sri Lanka, who won their first title.
#6 2016 - Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli's knock against Australia in the 2016 T20 World Cup is selected as the greatest moment in the T20 WC history by a poll conducted by ICC. https://t.co/YXxIprYz8n
Kohli's performance in the 2016 T20 World Cup was arguably one of the greatest campaigns in the history of the tournament. He scored 273 runs at an average of 136.50 and a strike rate of 147.
He played three impeccable knocks - 55* (37) vs Pakistan at Eden Gardens, 82* (51) vs Australia at Mohali and 89* (47) vs West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium.
India made it to the semi-finals on the back of these match-winning performances. However, they ended up losing to West Indies in what was a close encounter.
#7 2021 - Jasprit Bumrah
Team India had a disappointing campaign in the 2021 edition of the T20 World Cup, crashing out of the Super 12 stage. They lost to Pakistan and New Zealand, meaning they had to rely on other results going their way if they had to qualify for the semi-finals.
Ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah had a decent campaign, picking up seven wickets in five matches at an economy rate of just 5.09 and an average of 13.57.
Although he went wicketless against Pakistan, he kept the scoring rate in check while defending 151 - conceding 22 runs in three overs. He then took two wickets and conceded 19 runs in four overs against New Zealand, albeit in a losing cause.