T20 World Cup: 5 players to watch out for at cricket’s smash-and-grab festival
A powerful Indian hitter, an England all-rounder for the conditions, South Africa’s ‘Baby AB’, an in-demand Afghan, New Zealand’s Allen key
The Twenty20 World Cup gets under way in India and Sri Lanka on Saturday. The smash-and-bash nature of this cricket format makes it very likely to unearth a few stars of the future.
Here are five names to watch out for:
Abhishek Sharma, India
The opening batsman is already setting T20 alight with his powerful hitting from ball one. Sharma has the highest strike rate in T20s – 194.74 – and is currently the No 1-ranked T20 batter in the world.
Despite playing only cricket’s shortest, sharpest format at international level, Sharma has quickly climbed the ladder for India. In 38 matches, he averages 37.05 and has already hit two hundreds and eight half-centuries – that is a 50-plus score once every four times he goes to the crease.
Sharma was player of the tournament in the 2025 Asia Cup – where he finished with a strike rate of 200 and three successive half-centuries. It was his first taste of a multi-team tournament, beyond the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Undoubtedly, he holds the key to India’s ambition of defending their 2024 title.