Best Men's T20I playing 11 of 2024 ft. Rohit Sharma, Rashid Khan

Team India dominated T20Is in 2024, winning 22 of their 26 matches and losing only two. Two of their other matches ended in a tie. The Men in Blue's brilliant run in T20Is in 2024 also included clinching the T20 World Cup held in the West Indies and the United States. Amazingly, they did not drop a single game en route to winning an ICC event for the first time in 11 years.

South Africa, the runners-up in the T20 World Cup, had a mixed run in T20s in 2024. They played 23 matches, winning 12 and losing 11. Among other top sides, Australia had a terrific run, winning 17 matches and losing four, while England won 10 out of 17 games. New Zealand won 11 out of 21, while Pakistan were extremely poor, registering wins in only nine out of 27 matches.

With 2024 coming to an end, we try and put together the best T20I playing XI of the year.

---

Top order: Rohit Sharma (c), Travis Head, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper)

Australian batter Travis Head (Image Credits: Getty Images)

India's Rohit Sharma and Australia's Travis Head would be the opening batters in the best men's T20I playing XI of 2024. Rohit, who retired from T20Is after guiding the Men in Blue to victory in the T20 World Cup, played 11 matches, scoring 378 runs at an average of 42 and a strike rate of 160.16. He hammered a ton against Bangladesh and led from the front with the willow in the T20 World Cup as well.

Head played 15 T20Is in 2024, smashing 539 runs at an average of 38.50 and a strike rate of 178.47, with four half-centuries. The aggressive southpaw hit slammed 76 off 43 in the World Cup match against India in Gros Islet and 80 off just 25 balls against Scotland in Edinburgh.

Sanju Samson would be the keeper-batter in the best T20I XI of 2024. After years of inconsistency, he finally made a big impact on the big stage. In 13 matches, the right-handed batter struck 436 runs at an average of 43.60 and a strike rate of 180.16, with three hundreds and a fifty. After smashing tons in consecutive T20Is, Samson ended the year with another hundred against the Proteas.

---

Middle order & All-rounders: Tristan Stubbs, Marcus Stoinis, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel

Axar Patel was the unsung hero of India’s World Cup win. (Image Credits: Getty Images)

South Africa's Tristan Stubbs was among the team's most impactful batters in 2024 in the T20I format. In 18 matches, he notched up 431 runs at an average of 35.91 and a strike rate of 125.65. The 24-year-old hit 76 off 42 balls against West Indies in Tarouba and made consistent contributions for the team in the T20 World Cup as well as the four-match home series against India.

Australia's Marcus Stoinis and the Indian duo of Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel would be the all-rounders in the best T20I playing XI of 2024. Stoinis contributed 330 runs in 17 matches at an average of 36.66 and a strike rate of 156.39, with the aid of three fifties. With his medium pace, he claimed 21 wickets at an average of 17 and an economy rate of 8.77, with a best of 4-23.

Pandya and Axar played key roles in India's T20 World Cup triumphs, contributing with both bat and ball. Pandya scored 352 runs in 17 matches at an average of 44 and a strike rate of 150.42. With the ball, he claimed 16 wickets, averaging 26.25 at an economy rate of 8.23.

Axar was the unsung hero of India's T20 World Cup campaign. He played 16 T20Is in 2024, scoring 137 runs at a strike rate of 137, with a best of 47 from 31 balls in the World Cup final. With his left-arm spin, he claimed 20 wickets at an average of 16.30 and an economy rate of 7.08. He was the Player of the Match in the World Cup semifinal against England for his figures of 3-23.

---

Bowlers: Rashid Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Anrich Nortje

Anrich Nortje had an excellent World Cup campaign. (Image Credits: Getty Images)

Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Anrich Nortje would be the frontline pacers in the best T20I playing XI of 2024. Afghanistan's Rashid Khan would be the main spinner in the formidable bowling attack.

Bumrah played eight T20I matches in 2024, all in the T20 World Cup, picking up 15 wickets at an average of 8.26 and an economy rate of 4.17. The right-arm pacer was named Player of the Tournament for his fantastic bowling as India lifted the World Cup.

Left-arm pacer Arshdeep also had an outstanding year. In 18 matches, he claimed 36 wickets at an average of 13.50 and an economy rate of 7.49, with a best of 4-9. Proteas fast bowler Nortje was instrumental in South Africa's run to the World Cup final. In 11 games in 2024, he claimed 15 wickets, averaging 18.26 at an economy of 6.68.

As for Rashid, he featured in 14 T20I matches in 2024 and bagged an impressive haul of 31 wickets. He finished the year with an average of 9.58 and an economy rate of 5.60, with as many as four four-wicket hauls.