India skipper Virat Kohli and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah were the only two Indians who found a place in Wisden’s T20 International team of the decade, which didn’t feature M.S. Dhoni.
Australia’s limited-overs captain Aaron Finch was named captain of the team, which has two more Australian in Shane Watson and Glenn Maxwell, two England cricketers —Jos Buttler and David Willey, two Afghanistan all-rounders —Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan, and New Zealand’s Colin Munro and Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga.
On Kohli, Wisden said: “While Kohli’s record in domestic T20 cricket is patchy, the same cannot be said of T20Is. Kohli’s average of 53 was the best in the decade, and while his consistency compromises his strike-rate slightly, he is still able to score at a good rate, even if not exceptional.
Kohli, who ranks third in the list of leading run-scorers of all time with 21,444 runs, was also included in Wisden’s Test and ODI teams of the decade, besides being named in Wisden’s list of five cricketers of the decade which also features Steve Smith, Dale Steyn, A.B. de Villiers and Ellyse Perry.
Bumrah found a place in the bowling unit due to his superb economy rate and reputation for being a reliable death bowler.
“Bumrah’s overall economy rate of 6.71 is the second best in the world among quick bowlers, behind Dale Steyn,” Wisden said about Bumrah.
Wisden’s T20I team of the decade: Aaron Finch (Capt.), Colin Munro, Virat Kohli, Shane Watson, Glenn Maxwell, Jos Buttler, Mohammad Nabi, David Willey, Rashid Khan, Jasprit Bumrah and Lasith Malinga.
