The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 ended on a thrilling note for all the Indian cricket fans as the Indian cricket team finally lifted an ICC trophy after 11 years. It was a surreal game of cricket as the Men in Blue defeated the Proteas in the latter’s first final outing in an ICC event by just seven runs.
The final at the Kensington Oval in Barbados served the fans with the utmost entertainment as the momentum kept swinging between the two teams until the last ball. However, it was Rohit Sharma’s Men who took the glory home in the end. Apart from India winning their first ICC trophy in a decade and South Africa playing their first ICC final, the tournament also saw some stunning performances with the bat.
Right from the league round to the final, a handful of batters managed to impress the who’s who of the cricket fraternity with their ability to smash the ball all over the park, irrespective of the opposition or the pitch and playing conditions. In this article, let’s walk through the list of five players who dished out exceptional performances with the bat throughout the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
#5 Ibrahim Zadran: 231 Runs
The Afghanistan cricket team was truly a revelation during the just-concluded T20 World Cup as they defied all the expectations to reach the semi-final. The team defeated some bigwigs, including Australia, West Indies, and New Zealand, and one of the major reasons behind the same was the sensational form of batter Ibrahim Zadran.
With a whopping 231 runs to his name in just eight T20 Internationals at an average of 28.88, Zadran finished the World Cup in fifth place in the run-scoring list. The batter failed to contribute in the semi-final game against South Africa, but it was the league match against Uganda that saw Zadran delivering his tournament-best performance with a stunning knock of 70 runs, including nine boundaries and one maximum off just 46 balls.
#4 Quinton de Kock: 243 Runs
Quinton de Kock was the most valuable player for South Africa during T20 WC
The South African cricket team finally managed to remove the choker tag to a certain extent as they defeated Afghanistan in the semi-final to book their first final outing against India in Barbados. And it was Quinton de Kock who helped the team create history as he acted as One-Man Army for the Proteas in many games.
Despite the defeat against India, the wicketkeeper-batter finished the tournament on a high by being the top run-scorer for his team and fourth in the overall list with 243 runs in nine matches at an average of 27. Not only this, but he was also successful in etching his name in the record books for scoring the most runs for the South African cricket team in a single edition of the T20 WC.
While de Kock’s highest knock of 74 runs in the tournament came during a Super 8 match against the United States of America, he also tried to put on a brave front in the final by hammering 39 runs off 31 balls while chasing 176 runs.
#3 Travis Head: 255 Runs
Travis Head caused absolute carnage in the 2024 edition of the Indian cricket team that concluded last month with the Kolkata Knight Riders winning their third title. Though his franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad lost the final, Head carried forward his sensational form in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and ended up as the top batter for the Australian cricket team.
It was a tournament to forget for Mitchel Marsh & Men as they won only one of their three Super 8 games and were ruled out of the playoff race. However, Head was successful in creating an impact as he ended up as the third-highest run-getter in the tournament with 255 runs in seven matches at an average of over 42.
#2 Rohit Sharma: 257 Runs
Rohit Sharma led India to their second victory in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
With a victory over South Africa, the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma became the only Indian player to win two ICC Men’s T20 World Cups. Apart from his exceptional leadership skills, he also waves for stellar performances with the bat. Opening the innings in all the games alongside Virat Kohli, Rohit ended up being the second-highest run-getter in the tournament.
He defeated the likes of Suryakumar Yadav and Rishabh Pant to be the top run-scorer for India, with 257 runs to his name in eight games at an amazing average of 36.71. It was a rare failure for the skipper in the final against the Proteas, as he departed after scoring only nine runs.
However, the 37-year-old was the main man for India as they won a crucial Super 8 game against Australia. The Men in Blue managed to rack up a score of 205 runs in the allotted 20 overs courtesy of Sharma, who showed up with a knock of 92 runs off just 41 balls.
#1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz: 281 Runs
The Afghanistan cricket team created history in the 2024 edition of the T20 WC as they qualified for the semi-finals for the first time in an ICC event in the history of the gentlemen’s game. While the Afghans are known for their excellent spin, the T20 World Cup saw the batters leading from the front with the team being the only one to have two entries in the top 5 highest run-scorers.
In a surprising turn of events, Rahmanullah Gurbaz topped the run-scoring charts in the T20 Championship with a massive 281 runs to his credit in eight matches at an average of 35.12. He emerged as a big-match player with his best performance coming against New Zealand as the Afghans caused a massive upset by 84 runs.
In a historic win, the wicketkeeper-batter took home the Player of the Match award for helping his team put up a brilliant score of 159 runs by smacking 82 runs off just 56 balls with the help of five boundaries and as many maximums.