Top 5 Indian T20I batsmen of the decade

#3 Suresh Raina

Suresh Raina

Matches - 67, Innings - 56, Runs - 1,456, Average - 30.97, Strike Rate - 136.97

The veteran left-hander may be out of favor now, but Suresh Raina was undoubtedly among India’s most successful T20I players in his prime. Having all the attacking shots in the book to succeed in the shortest format of the sport, he took to T20Is like fish to water.

In fact, Raina is the first cricketer from India to register a hundred in all three formats of the game. He achieved the feat during his blazing 101 from 60 balls against South Africa at Gros Islet in May 2010. What made the achievement even more significant was the fact that it came at a grand stage - the World T20.

Apart from the century, Raina also registered four fifties in his T20I career, one of them coming in the same world tournament against Sri Lanka. Coming in at number three, Raina often took on the opponents and played match-winning knocks for India. His razor-sharp fielding was an added advantage.

Raina has maintained an excellent strike rate of nearly 137 in the decade, but he last played for India in July 2018. He hasn’t performed badly in his most recent matches, constantly reaching 30s and 40s. However, his inability to convert starts coupled with the emergence of the dashing KL Rahul led to his axing.

Considering Raina's pedigree, there is still a faint chance of him coming back into the picture for the World T20 next year.