After months of preparation, the 2022 T20 World Cup is finally here as 12 of the best sides from across the world battle it out in Australia for the biggest prize in T20 cricket. The eighth edition of the T20 World Cup promises to be one of the most exciting ones yet, with as many as five teams capable of going all the way and plenty of world-class players in action across the four weeks such as Jos Buttler and Virat Kohli.
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The defending champions have upgraded their 2021 T20 World Cup-winning side with the addition of Tim David to the middle order in place of Steve Smith. David has dominated the franchise T20 circuit over the past few years, most notably scoring 186 runs at a strike rate of 216 for the Mumbai Indians in IPL 2022. The 26-year-old has also had an incredible start to his T20I career, striking at 166 in his first eight matches, and his power-hitting adds another layer of dynamism to the Australian batting line-up.
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Shaheen Afridi makes his long-awaited comeback from injury at the 2022 T20 World Cup, and the left-armer could be the difference maker for Pakistan at the tournament. Shaheen is one of the premier pacers in T20I cricket, blessed with the ability to swing the new ball both ways and bowl deadly accurate yorkers at the death.
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One of the lesser-known players who could make their mark at the 2022 T20 World Cup is South African batter Tristan Stubbs. The 22-year-old made his T20 debut for the Proteas in June 2022 and has already created a massive impact on the team with his performances in the middle order. Stubbs starred for South Africa with a magnificent 72 off 28 balls against England in England and has a hugely impressive strike rate of 191 in nine matches for the country.
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There aren’t many more exciting players in world cricket in 2022 than Liam Livingstone. The Englishman is one of the most fearsome six-hitters on the T20 circuit and is primed to light up this T20 World Cup for Jos Buttler’s side with his pyrotechnics in the middle order. Livingstone has plenty of experience playing on Australian pitches thanks to his time with the Big Bash, and the all-rounder could be England’s x-factor with both bat and ball down under.
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Suryakumar Yadav has emerged as team India’s most valuable batter in 2022, with the Mumbai star topping the T20I run-scoring charts for the calendar year. The 32-year-old has also risen to number two in the ICC T20I batter rankings and has overshadowed the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the Indian batting line-up with his versatility and shot-making. Yadav is the glue that holds the batting line-up together at number four, and his form at the 2022 T20 World Cup will play a big part in team India’s success in Australia.
Shivaan Shah