Most T20Is Appearances: Rohit Sharma Equals MS Dhoni, Shoaib Malik Leads The List of Cricketers Who Have Played Most Twenty20 International Matches
In the list of players with most T20Is, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni take the third spot. The top position is grabbed by Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik who featured in 111 matches while his former teammate Shahid Afridi holds the second position with 99 T20 Internationals.
The third T20I match between India and South Africa was not great at all from the host’s point of view. However, Indian opener Rohit Sharma had a moment to cherish as he achieved an eminent feat. The right-handed batsman stepped on the field for the 98th time in a T20I match and equalled MS Dhoni’s record of playing for the most number of T20 International appearances for India. The former skipper didn’t play any game post the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 and gave the chance to Rohit Sharma to come close to his tally. The 32-year-old also became the highest T20I run-scorer in the 3rd clash but was soon surpassed by captain Virat Kohli. Rohit Sharma Equals MS Dhoni’s Record of Most T20I Appearances for India During IND vs SA, 3rd T20I.
In the list of players with most T20Is, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni take the third spot. The top position is taken by Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik who featured in 111 matches while his former teammate Shahid Afridi holds the second position with 99 T20 Internationals. Afridi has already hung up his boots and, Malik and Dhoni are also nearing their retirement age. So, Rohit can top this list soon. Well, talking about the players with the most number of T20Is, let’s look at the top-10 players with most appearances in the shortest international format.
List of Players with the most number of T20Is:
| S.NO | Name | Matches | Career Span | Runs/ Wickets |
| 1 | Shoaib Malik (PAK) | 111 | 2006- | 2263/128 |
| 2 | Shahid Afridi (PAK) | 99 | 2006-2018 | 1416/198 |
| 3 | Rohit Sharma (IND) | 98 | 2007- | 2443/ 1 |
| 4 | MS Dhoni (PAK) | 98 | 2006- | 1617/ 0 |
| 5 | Ross Taylor (NZ) | 90 | 2006- | 1627/ 0 |
| 6 | Mohammad Hafeez (PAK) | 89 | 2006- | 1908/ 54 |
| 7 | Umar Akmal (PAK) | 82 | 2009- | 1690/ 0 |
| 8 | Eoin Morgan (ENG) | 81 | 2009- | 1810/ 0 |
| 9 | Mushfiqur Rahim (BAN) | 81 | 2006- | 1201/ 0 |
| 10 | JP Duminy (SA) | 81 | 2007- | 1934/ 0 |
Coming to the 3rd India vs South Africa T20I match, after losing the first encounter, the Proteas made an impeccable comeback and clinched the match by nine wickets. The first match was washed-off and the series resulted in a drawn 1-1. The World T20 2020 is just one year way and all the teams gearing up for the gala-tournament. Many T20 games are lined up in the international matches and all teams will look to put their best foot forward in order to prepare for the World T20.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 23, 2019 04:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).