Top 5 Batters To Watch Out For In The 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup

After two months of non-stop entertainment in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2024), it is time to shift the focus on the much-awaited ICC T20 World Cup 2024 scheduled to be held in the West Indies and United States of America (USA). The ICC World Cup warm up matches will be starting from 27 May, 2024 while the main tournament will begin with the opening encounter between USA and Canada taking place at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on 2 June, 2024. Majority of the international teams have also kickstarted with their intense preparations for the upcoming mega event. The England team are currently the defending champions having won the previous edition of the T20 World Cup in 2022. In this blog post, check out the top five batters to watch out for in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. 

Top 5 Batters to watch out for in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup

1. Virat Kohli

Former India captain Virat Kohli will be entering into the 2024 T20 World Cup in a phenomenal batting form having scored the most runs in IPL 2024. He finished as the leading run-getter in the recently concluded T20 tournament having scored a wonderful tally of 741 runs from 15 games at an amazing average of more than 61. The right-handed Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) opener had a fine strike-rate of over 150 with as many as five half-centuries and one hundred. While shifting the focus on T20I cricket, Kohli also ended with the most runs in World Cup 2022, composing a total of 296 runs at a mind-boggling average of 98.67 that included a sensational knock in the India vs Pakistan match. Virat has the most runs in T20Is at this moment with a superb tally of 4037 runs from 117 matches at an average of over 51 and a strike-rate of close to 140 that includes 37 fifties and one hundred. 

2. Travis Head

Without much of doubt, Australia's left-handed batsman Travis Head has been in the form of his life during the last few months across the three formats of the game. The southpaw smashed a blistering match-winning hundred against India to help Australia win the ODI World Cup 2023 trophy. He has also been in a brilliant form during the recently concluded IPL 2024 season having notched up 567 runs in 15 matches at an exceptional strike-rate of over 191. The 30-year-old played a crucial role in helping the Sunrisers Hyderabad qualify for the final of the Indian Premier League 2024. Head has smacked 656 runs in 26 T20I matches at an excellent strike-rate of close to 150. Despite not having the best of numbers in T20I cricket, Travis Head will definitely be a key player to watch out for in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024. 

3. Jos Buttler

England captain Jos Buttler will be hoping to lead his side from the front in the forthcoming mega event. He is currently captaining his national team in the England vs Pakistan fourth-match T20I series. Buttler will also be coming into this T20I tournament on the back of two fantastic centuries in the IPL 2024 season. In a must-win semifinal encounter against India during the 2022 T20 World Cup, he went on to play a fabulous unbeaten innings of 80 runs off only 49 deliveries that included 9 fours and 3 sixes. The English skipper also smashed an impressive half-century in the recently concluded second T20I match against Pakistan.

4. Babar Azam

Babar Azam is once again back as the Pakistan captain ahead of the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup replacing fellow teammate Shaheen Afridi. The right-hander has been the No 1 T20 Batsman in the ICC Rankings for long period of time after being dethroned by India's Suryakumar Yadav. If Pakistan are to do well in the World T20, Babar will have to play well in the mega event on a consistent basis. While talking about his numbers in the shortest format of the game, the Pakistani skipper has scored 3987 runs from 118 T20I matches at an average of more than 41 that includes 36 half-centuries and 3 hundreds. 

5. Devon Conway

New Zealand's Devon Conway will be coming into the mega event after a long injury layoff due to which he also missed the Indian Premier League 2024 season and was all over the cricket news for the same reason. However, if he gets into his usual run-scoring form, he can prove to be a very dangerous player in the World Cup. The Kiwi southpaw opener has smashed 1338 runs in 46 T20I matches at an average of close to 40. With a strike-rate of nearly 130, Conway has notched up as many as 10 T20I fifties so far.