T20 WC 2021: Rating openers of top 8 teams ahead of the tournament

The T20 WC 2021 is going to commence in the UAE on October 17, all the nations would put their best foot forward to clinch the glory. As the remaining edition of IPL 2021 will also be taking on UAE soil, it will act as a great platform for players to polish themselves.

West Indies are the defending champions and would be keen on defending their title. However, the race among the major cricketing nations is cut-throat and none of them can be taken as an easy card. Talking in the same sequence, the openers of the respective nations play an instrumental role in putting the team in a commanding position.

While putting up the target, openers help the teams to set a great tone and while chasing, they can allow the middle order to ease while scoring crucial runs. Therefore, they play a vital role and, in this list, let’s take a look at where openers stand in ratings among the top eight playing nations.

Rating openers of top 8 teams ahead of T20 WC 2021

8. Bangladesh- Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar and Mohammad Naim- 6

Bangladesh recently scripted history with their first-ever series win over Australia. They won the T20I series 4-1 under the captaincy of Mahmudullah. However, it can’t de declared as their ultimate win as Kangaroos were without the services of many of their big names. Also, Bangladesh are yet to prove themselves in away games.

In the absence of their ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal, who was out due to a knee injury, Soumya Sarkar and Mohammad Naim recently did the opening job. However, when Iqbal returns, he is sure to take his opening place as the experienced man has played 78 T20Is for his team by collecting over 1700 runs.

Talking about Soumya Sarkar, his stats speak for him as the Southpaw has been part of 61 T20Is for Bangladesh and has collected more runs than Iqbal. Liton Das can also be one of the opening batsmen for Bangladesh in case of situations.

7. New Zealand- Martin Guptill and Tim Seifert- 6.5

New Zealand recently sealed the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship in June 2021 and their squad also looks decent enough in the limited-overs as well. Experienced and classy batter Martin Guptill and Tim Seifert will most likely open the lineup for NZ.

It has to be noted that Guptill has been playing for Kiwis since 2009 and has played a huge 102 T20Is for Kiwis with close to 3000 runs under his belt. He also stands second in the list of highest run-getters in the T20I format.

Tim Seifert is an explosive wicketkeeper-batsman and has over 2000 runs in T20 format to his name. His strike rate of over 130 will be valuable on the slow UAE wickets.

6. South Africa- Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, and Janneman Malan-7

The story of South Africa has been heartbreaking at ICC events where they carry the title of being known as chokers. However, their players are of no less caliber in each and every department of the game.

Bavuma has taken up the responsibility of the Proteas in limited-overs from Quinton de Kock and might be opening the order for his team. Talking about Bavuma whose T20I career has just kicked off 2019, he has played 16 games for his team collecting 410 runs.

On the other hand, former skipper De Kock stands as one of the biggest assets of their batting order who has so far gathered 1605 runs in 54 T20Is while averaging over 32. Malan can also open up for SA who has shown some great form in his brief career so far. His played fiery innings against Ireland in the last month can be of great value for the team in T20 WC 2021.

5. West Indies- Evin Lewis and Lendl Simmons – 7.5

West Indies recently defeated Australia 4-1 in the T20I series and it showed their will and character in the format. They are the defending champions of the T20 WC and will be keen on defending their prestigious title.

Evin Lewis alongside Lendl Simmons would be a great opening pair for the Caribbean where Lewis has 1318 runs in 45 T20Is he has played since 2016. He also has two centuries to his name in the given format and he was also declared as the player of the match in the final T20I against Australia.

Lendl Simmons would be another player who may take the pads with Lewis while opening the order for West Indies. The experienced man of WI has played 66 T20Is so far mustering 1508 runs in his bag with nine half-centuries.

4. Australia- Aaron Finch, David Warner, and Matthew Wade- 8

The Australian team recently suffered many blows while losing T20Is against West Indies and then Bangladesh. However, their fate just cannot be calculated on these results as many of their first-choice players didn’t play in these squads.

Aaron Finch and David Warner stand to be two of the greatest batsmen in the world in the given format. After kicking off his journey in T20Is in 2011, the limited-overs skipper has collected 2473 runs and stands at 4^th position in the list of highest run-getter in T20Is.

Talking of Warner, he has been part of 81 T20Is with 2265 runs under his account and a batting average of 31.45. Wade has held the ruins of the Australian team in the limited-overs format in absence of Finch and even he can be one of the fine options up the order in T20 WC 2021.

3. England- Jason Roy and Jos Buttler- 8.5

The third number on the list is taken up by England’s Jason Roy and Jos Buttler who have done decently in the given format and will look up to take England high in the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup

The Surrey batsman has been plying his trade across various T20 leagues of the world, including IPL. Talking about his T20I career, he has played 49 matches for the English team while collecting 1193 runs averaging 24.85.

On the other hand, Buttler stands as another skillful batsman in the England setup who can change the fate of the team by shining up the order. His rich form has led him to be part of the England squad in 82 T20Is where he has collected 1871 runs so far.

2. India- KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma- 9

KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma have been doing all the good for the men in blue and for a long time now. In fact, both of them are hailed as one of the best in the T20I business across the world. However, they stand second in the list due to Rizwan and Azam’s latest numbers (small sample though).

Talking about KL Rahul’s journey which has spanned five years in the T20I format, he has made a name for himself and has 1557 runs in his account. Playing 49 T20Is so far, Rahul has a batting average of 39.92 which includes two centuries as well.

The story of Rohit Sharma doesn’t need much introduction who has developed himself as one of the all-format greats in the world. In 111 T20Is, he has collected 2864 runs and stands third in the list of highest scorers in the format.

1. Pakistan- Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam- 9.5

Pakistan’s openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam appear to be in form of their lives. The credit of Pakistan’s recent victories in the T20Is goes in their account hands down where both of them have shown nerve of steel to get the team over the line in crunch situations.

The Men in green also depend heavily on them as their middle-order hasn’t come to the team’s rescue much and hence the openers do the job. Talking about the Pakistan skipper and one of the greatest batsmen of the modern era, Azam has played 61 T20Is, where he has more than 2200 runs under his belt while averaging 46.89.

Talking about Rizwan, in his last 18 T20Is, he has wreaked havoc on the opposition by scoring 841 runs with an average of a whopping 93.44. The last 18 T20Is also have one century and eight fifties and the combination of these two batsmen can surely give nightmares to the team in front during T20 WC 2021.