2022 has been a fantastic year in cricket. England was crowned T20 world champion in Australia, India has been in excellent form in white-ball cricket, while in the Test arena, Australia has shown they remain the team to beat.
Here is a look at the four players who have stood out for their respective countries.
Ben Stokes (England)
Ben Stokes deserves to be on this list for the way he has transformed England in Test cricket since taking over as their captain back in April. As the BBC reported, his side ended the year with a whitewash over Pakistan. They have now won nine of their last ten Test matches, a huge turnaround in form.
Unbelievable series win in Pakistan!! So proud of the team, thanks for the amazing support 🏴🏴 pic.twitter.com/2IxBKmdtov
— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) December 20, 2022
The England Test skipper has urged his players to be aggressive and brave in everything they do in his team. They have responded well to that appeal, and it has seen many of them have an excellent summer and tour of Pakistan.
Stokes opted to retire from ODI cricket earlier this year, but he continues to play T20 internationals. The all-rounder was part of the England team which lifted the T20 World Cup trophy in November. He produced a match-winning performance in the final against Pakistan steering his side to their target.
Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Pakistan captain Babar Azam is one of the most popular PCB players in the world, including in India. He features for his country in all three formats of the game, and he continues to be very consistent with the bat in T20Is, ODIs, and Test cricket. That is reflected in the world rankings, as he is inside the top five in all three batting standings.
Azam, who is considered one of the best batsmen in ICC cricket, led his side to the finals of the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup in 2022. They were beaten by Sri Lanka and England respectively in those games, but it was still a big achievement to finish runners-up in two major tournaments.
Despite the defeat, the 28-year-old performed well with the bat against England in the three-match Test series in Pakistan. He scored 136 in the opening innings of the First Test, in the Second Test in Multan he hit a 75 in the first innings, while in the final Test, he recorded scores of 78 and 54 in Karachi.
Suryakumar Yadav (India)
It has been a breakthrough year for India’s Suryakumar Yadav in international cricket. The right-handed batsman helped the Mumbai Indians win the IPL trophy in 2019. He is now seen as a consistent match-winner in T20Is and ODIs for his country.
Yadav shone during India’s tour of England back in the summer. He was instrumental in their T20 and ODI series wins. He also went on to shine at the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup, which is why he tops the T20I batting rankings ahead of all the most destructive batters in world cricket.
The middle-order batsman hit two T20 international centuries in 2022, matching what Rohit Sharma achieved in 2018. As Reuters flagged up, the first of those came against England at Trent Bridge Nottingham in July. He then scored a ton against New Zealand at the Bay Oval, with the second over those coming in just 51 balls.
Pat Cummins (Australia)
Australia continues to sit at the top of the Test rankings in cricket after another great year. Their captain has not only led the team well across their assignments in 2022, but he has also been one of their best bowlers.
Five wickets for Pat Cummins as Australia bowl out South Africa for 99 and need just 34 to beat South Africa inside two days. 🎯
Scorecard: https://t.co/ubIhQdMXzv#BBCCricket #AUSvSA pic.twitter.com/JNBD2bOdnu
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) December 18, 2022
Cummins will be the man England fears the most at the Ashes next year. As of the 22nd of December, Australia are the 2.0 favorites in the Betway sports betting for that series as they bid to retain the urn. With a strong bowling attack firing, Australia will be confident of further success against their rivals.
As well as picking up regular wickets for his country, the Cricket Australia captain has also improved with the bat. He is arguably now a strong all-rounder for his country. The 28-year-old can pick up fast runs, which often helps his country go from being around par score to one which is hard to chase down.
Hopefully, 2023 produces some great performances from the world’s leading players in international cricket. With the Ashes, 2023 Cricket World Cup, and the conclusion of the World Test Championship on the schedule, there is a lot to look forward to.