3 min readMar 8, 2026 09:59 AM IST
ICC T20 World Cup Player of the Tournament winners: The 10th edition of the Men’s T20 World Cup will draw curtains on Sunday as India face New Zealand in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Since its inception, the T20 World Cup has seen several scintillating performers revelling across editions, even single-handedly pulling their teams across the line on numerous occasions.
Over the last nine completed editions, eight different players have emerged as the Player of the Tournament between 2007 and 2024. India legend Virat Kohli is the only player to have received the accolade, running sensational streaks in both the 2014 and 2016 editions. Kohli recorded 319 runs in 2014 as India fell short in the final against Sri Lanka. He was the lone sparkle during India’s last World Cup at home in 2016, scoring 273 runs as the Men in Blue bowed with a semi-final loss.
Pakistan legend Shahid Afridi was the first recipient of the Player of the Tournament award in 2007, having picked up 12 wickets and scored 91 runs even as his team fell before India in the final. The awards have since been split between two Australians (Shane Watson in 2012 and David Warner in 2021), two Englishmen (Kevin Pietersen in 2010 and Sam Curran in 2022) and a Sri Lankan (Tillakaratne Dilshan in 2009). India’s pace ace Jasprit Bumrah was adjudged the Player of the Tournament during the victorious run to a second title in 2024, bagging 15 wickets in eight games.
ICC T20 World Player of the Tournament award winners
| Player | Team | Year | Matches | Runs | Wickets |
| Shahid Afridi | Pakistan | 2007 | 7 | 91 | 12 |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan | Sri Lanka | 2009 | 7 | 317 | 0 |
| Kevin Pietersen | England | 2010 | 6 | 248 | 0 |
| Shane Watson | Australia | 2012 | 7 | 249 | 11 |
| Virat Kohli | India | 2014 | 6 | 319 | 0 |
| Virat Kohli | India | 2016 | 5 | 273 | 1 |
| David Warner | Australia | 2021 | 7 | 289 | 0 |
| Sam Curran | England | 2022 | 6 | 12 | 13 |
| Jasprit Bumrah | India | 2024 | 8 | – | 15 |
| TBA | TBA | 2026 |
In the running for the award ahead of the India vs New Zealand final are eight players, three of whom will play in the final tonight. The ICC had revealed that Sanju Samson (India), Will Jacks (England), Sahibzada Farhan (Pakistan), Lungi Ngidi (South Africa), Aiden Markram (South Africa), Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand), Shadley van Schalkwyk (USA), and Tim Seifert (New Zealand) are among the nominees for the recognition this edition.
