Virat Kohli may be struggling as the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019, but he is scaling new heights in the international arena. The year 2018 was phenomenal for the Indian skipper, thanks to his consistency. The 30-year-old scored a total of 2,735 runs across all formats in 2018 which made him an undisputed contender for Wisden ‘Leading cricketer in the world’ third year in a row.
The Indian skipper also led India to their first-ever Test series win in Australia. His compatriot, Smriti Mandhana, is not far behind either. Mandhana was named ‘Leading woman cricketer in the world’. Mandhana has become an indispensable part of India woman cricket team since World Cup 2017.
Afghanistan’s star leg-spinner Rashid Khan was among wickets in the past the year. Rashid played in almost every T20 league in the world dominating the batsman. The bowling all-rounder was named ‘Leading Twenty20 cricketer of the year’ for the second time in a row.
Kohli was named among 5 Wisden cricketers of the year too. The other four cricketers are Tammy Beaumont, Sam Curran, Rory Burns and Jos Buttler.
Beaumont scored the fastest T20 century by an England woman off just 47 deliveries. She was a part of England’s T20 World Cup 2018 winners squad as well. The 28-year-old also smashed two back-to-back centuries against South Africa.
Curran made a fantastic debut against India at home. His all-round performances earned him the ‘Player of the series’ award as well. The 20-year-old’s talent was also spotted by the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises as they engaged in a bidding war for him in the auction. Finally, he was picked up by Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) for Rs 7.2 crore.
Burns got noticed for his knocks for Surrey in red-ball cricket. The leading run-scorer of the tournament earned a place in the English Test squad. The 28-year-old has not made it big in international cricket yet but his performances in domestic cricket speak volumes of the talent he possesses.
Amongst great company up there. pic.twitter.com/HgKw0Xgond
— Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) April 10, 2019
Buttler is another cricketer who has performed across all formats. From making a return in the Test side to playing a pivotal role in whitewashing Australia at home in ODIs.
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