Virat Kohli's milestones, SKY's exploits: Indian cricketers shine in 2022
India recently routed Bangladesh 2-0 after claiming a thrilling win in the second and final Test in Dhaka. Despite faring poorly with the bat, KL Rahul won his first Test series as captain in the absence of the injured Rohit Sharma. Like Rahul, several other Indian players scripted monumental records across formats throughout the year. We take a look at the same.
Most T20I wins by a captain in a calendar year
Although Rohit ended 2022 without a century, he accomplished a major leadership milestone. He guided India to 21 wins in 29 T20Is this year, most by a captain in a calendar year. Rohit went past Pakistan's Babar Azam, who took the Men in Green to 20 T20I victories last year. Among Indians, MS Dhoni (15 in 2016) follows Rohit in this regard.
Kohli became the leading run-scorer of T20 WC
Indian batter Virat Kohli regained his mojo in white-ball cricket. Kohli now has the most runs in ICC T20 World Cup history (1,141 in 27 games). He displaced Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene (1,016) at the top. Kohli scored 250+ runs for the third time in a T20 WC edition (2014, 2016, and 2022). He also became the first man to reach 4,000 T20I runs.
Kohli breaks this record of Sachin Tendulkar
Kohli now has the most runs by an Indian in the ICC World Cup knockouts (ODIs and T20Is). Kohli, who owns 361 runs, surpassed Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar (339) in this regard. Rohit occupies the third spot with 333 runs.
Maiden T20I ton; fastest to 24,000 international runs
Kohli scored a scintillating 122*(61) against Afghanistan at the Asia Cup 2022, his maiden T20I century. Meanwhile, Kohli also became the fastest to 24,000 runs, breaking the record of Tendulkar. Kohli reached the landmark in 522 innings, while Tendulkar took 543 innings to do so. In December, Kohli slammed his 72nd international century (3rd ODI against Bangladesh), steering clear of Ponting (71).
SKY transcended his limits
Suryakumar Yadav and his stroke-making grabbed eyeballs in 2022. He remained the only batter with over 1,000 T20I runs this year. He finished with 1,164 runs, having struck at a staggering 187.43. In Mount Maunganui, Suryakumar smashed his 2nd T20I century (51-ball 111*). He became the second Indian after Rohit (2018) to slam two T20I tons in a calendar year.
Other records scripted by SKY
Suryakumar became the first-ever Indian to have slammed over 700 T20I runs in a calendar year. He surpassed the previous record held by Shikhar Dhawan (689 in 2018). Suryakumar became the first Indian to register 11 50+ scores in T20I cricket in a calendar year. Interestingly, Kohli recorded seven such scores in 2016 and nine in 2022.
First Indian wicket-keeper with this feat
Wicket-keeper-batter Rishabh Pant had a forgettable time in white-ball cricket. However, he was at his absolute best in Test cricket, finishing the year as India's highest run-scorer (680 runs at 61.81). Pant touched the 650-run mark in Tests for the second consecutive year, becoming the first Indian wicket-keeper to do so. Pant racked up 748 runs from 12 Tests last year.
Most T20I wickets by a pacer in a calendar year
Pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the linchpin of India's bowling attack in T20I cricket this year. He topped the wickets column for India in the format. Earlier this year, Bhuvneshwar broke Andrew Tye's record of taking the most T20I wickets by a pacer in a calendar year. The Australian pacer snapped up 31 T20I wickets from 19 matches in 2018.
Most Powerplay wickets in a calendar year (T20Is)
Bhuvneshwar aced the Powerplay in T20Is this year. He now has the most T20I wickets by a bowler in this phase in a calendar year. Bhuvi took 21 Powerplay wickets at an average of 18.00 (economy rate of 5.47).
A wicket off the first ball!
Left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh delivered one of the best balls of his career on his T20 World Cup debut. He uprooted Pakistan captain Babar Azam on his very first delivery of the ICC tournament, a ferocious in-swinger. Arshdeep is the second Indian to take a wicket off the first ball in the T20 WC after former spinner Pragyan Ojha (vs Bangladesh, 2009).
Have a look at other notable records
Pant became the fastest Indian batter to smash 50 sixes in Test cricket (in terms of balls). SKY has the most fifty-plus scores by an Indian while striking 200-plus in T20Is (7). He beat Rohit (3), Rahul (4), and Yuvraj Singh (5). Kohli broke Brian Lara's record (940) for the most international runs by a visiting batter at the Adelaide Oval (957).
