After a pulsating final to the 2022 T20 World Cup, England emerged victorious after defeating rivals Pakistan by five wickets. Ben Stokes was the hero of the hour, finishing play on 52 not out and ensuring that England become the first nation to hold both the T20 and ODI World Cup titles at the same time.
For those cricket fans who like to finger the pulse of international cricket by staying abreast of the live score in individual matches, Stokes’ starring role will come as no surprise – since he did it three years ago and has been doing it regularly ever since. But while his and England’s pedigree on the global stage is impressive, which team is the most successful in T20 terms? We take a closer look below.
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Six winners to date
Since its inception in 2007, the T20 World Cup has experienced an irregular schedule which included a five-year hiatus between 2016 and 2021. For that reason, there have only been a total of eight competitions so far, with six nations claiming the titles throughout that time.
With their win in Melbourne in November, England claimed their second T20 trophy to add to their 2010 triumph. Indeed, only one other team has managed to win the tournament twice and that is the West Indies, who walked off with the top prize in 2012 and then again in 2016. The other teams to have lifted the trophy are Australia, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Best winning ratios
So, England and the West Indies might be the top two nations in terms of titles won, but which teams have recorded the most victories at the sport’s prestigious T20 event? That accolade belongs to Sri Lanka, who have won 31 of their 51 matches to date. Pakistan are second on the leaderboard, claiming victory in 28 of their 46 ties, while India round out the top three with 27 wins from 44 games.
However, if we analyze performance based on winning percentage, not total wins, it’s a different story altogether. Pakistan and Sri Lanka fall out of the top three, with India (63.95%) and Australia (62.5%) claiming the second and third spot, respectively. Nepal, who have only appeared at one T20 World Cup in 2014, won two of their three ties to give them the highest win ratio in the competition’s history. Interestingly, the two most successful teams (England and the West Indies) have the two lowest win percentages of any nation to have won the cup.
Individual performance
As for individual performance, no-one has scored more runs than India’s Virat Kohli, who has bagged 1,141 runs to date. Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene is second with 1,016 runs, while the West Indies Chris Gayle is third with 965 runs. Only Kohli is still playing and therefore has a chance to add to his tally.
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As for bowling, Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan has taken the most T20 World Cup wickets in his career, with 47 across 36 matches. Shahid Afridi of Pakistan is second on the list with 39 wickets in just 34 games and he also holds the highest overall average, while Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga is in third with 38 wickets in 31 games.
With the dust now settled on England’s triumphant T20 campaign in Australia this year, all eyes will turn to the next incarnation of the event. Can the team pull clear of the West Indies next time round? Or will a new nation claim the trophy?
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