The upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup will begin on October 17th this year. It is after five years that the event would be taking place. Although it was scheduled to happen in India last year, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was pushed to 2021. In this article, we take a look at the list of five players who could become the man of the tournament in T20 WC.
Since there is a gap of five years with the last edition, there would be a number of newcomers at the upcoming competition. That said, as to who could perform the best, there are the usual contenders. We discuss five of them in the below headings.
1) Babar Azam
It will be Babar Azam’s first T20 World Cup and yet, he is one of the players who could become the man of the tournament in T20 WC. The Pakistani captain has been in terrific form across formats in recent years. In fact, it would not be an understatement if you could say that he has been one of the best. Babar’s approach is tailor-made for big scores and hence, he is likely to get a few of them in the competition. This could help him win the Player of the Series Award.
2) Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma did really well at the 2019 World Cup. Hence, the expectation is that he would repeat a similar performance in the World T20. Although Rohit’s T20I form has not been great, he is a big-tournament player and India will hope that the Hitman starts off well. Moreover, with his opening partner, be it, KL Rahul or Shikhar Dhawan, in excellent form, Rohit can take on the bowling, which will suit his natural style.
3) Jonny Bairstow
Jonny Bairstow’s form in limited-overs cricket is such that we just cannot afford to not include him in this list of players who could become the man of the tournament in T20 WC. The Englishman is known for his fearless batting, and he also manages to complement it with long stays at the crease. He will surely open the batting for his country at the event. Hence, he will get a lot of deliveries to face and the kind of form that he is in, a few big knocks are guaranteed.
4) Rashid Khan
Rashid Khan may not be No.1 in ICC’s T20I bowling charts right now. However, there is no doubt that he is the best limited-overs spinner in the game. Since the T20 World Cup is a big event, batsmen will usually be under pressure to score runs. Here is where a player like Rashid Khan could find success. He is difficult to pick and this will be a different challenge for the batsmen. It would also not be a surprise if Rashid does well with the bat, too.
5) Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah is slowly returning to his best. This will be good news for Team India, which will rely on Bumrah to pick loads of wickets. In T20I cricket, especially in big tournaments, bowlers have to do very well. For India, Bumrah is the best resource at the moment and hence, he will be raring to give his 100%. Bumrah can pick wickets both at the start and the end of the innings. Therefore, if he is in form, the wickets column is likely to carry a handsome number.