The Indian cricket team, who won the inaugural men’s T20 World Cup in 2007, boasts some fantastic players in the shortest format. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Suryakumar Yadav have taken the T20l stage by storm with their exceptional batting performances over the years.
Suresh Raina was the first centurion in T20Is for India. He achieved the feat in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2010. Ever since, six more players have reached the three-figure milestone in this format.
Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav are the joint record holders for the most T20I centuries for India with four centuries each. It is also the joint record for most T20I centuries in international cricket.
Virat Kohli, the top run-scorer in T20 Internationals, also features in the list. Gill’s unbeaten 126 against New Zealand in February 2023 is India’s highest individual score.
Let us look at the cricketers with the most T20 International tons for India.
Most T20I centuries for India
|
Player |
Centuries |
Highest score |
|
Suryakumar Yadav |
4 |
117 |
|
Rohit Sharma |
4 |
118 |
|
KL Rahul |
2 |
110* |
|
Shubman Gill |
1 |
126* |
|
Virat Kohli |
1 |
122* |
|
Deepak Hooda |
1 |
104 |
|
Suresh Raina |
1 |
101 |
Rohit Sharma - 4 T20I centuries
Rohit Sharma was only the second Indian cricketer to register a T20I hundred, during South Africa’s tour of India in 2015. The opener smashed 106 runs off 66 balls to set up India’s win.
He smashed a 43-ball 118 against Sri Lanka in 2017, creating the record for the fastest T20I ton by an Indian batter. Rohit took the Sri Lankan bowlers to the cleaners and powered India to 260/5.
The Hitman’s third and fourth centuries in the format came in 2018. While his unbeaten 111 helped India beat West Indies, the 100 off 56 balls against England in Bristol helped successfully chase 199.
Suryakumar Yadav - 4 T20I centuries
Since his T20I debut against England in 2021, Suryakumar Yadav has taken the world stage by storm. He finished 2022 as the top run-scorer in the format and hit the most sixes by any batter in a calendar year in T20Is.
Meanwhile, two of SKY’s three T20I tons also came in 2022. He played a whirlwind knock of 117 runs from 55 balls against England in Nottingham to become the fifth Indian men’s cricketer to score a hundred in this format. Suryakumar notched another century, a 51-ball 111 against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui in November.
His second-last century in T20 Internationals was against Sri Lanka in January 2023 at Rajkot. Coming in to bat in a series decider, Suryakumar Yadav tonked the Lankan bowlers around the ground with his 360-degree stroke-making, scoring 112 runs off just 51 balls.
He got his fourth T20I century against South Africa in the third T20I of a three-match series against the Proteas in December. His 56-ball 100 helped India set up a 202-run target for the South Africans to chase.
KL Rahul - 2 T20I centuries
Karnataka-born KL Rahul completes the top three with two T20I centuries for India. His first ton in the format was an impressive 110 off only 51 deliveries while chasing 246 against West Indies. Despite the heroics, India fell short of the target by one run.
His second hundred, meanwhile, came in a winning cause against England in 2018. The swashbuckling batter smashed an unbeaten 54-ball 101, guiding India to an eight-wicket win in Manchester.
Photo credits: Alamy
