With the match-winning, unbeaten 84-run inning off just 49 balls against the USA, Suryakumar Yadav has broken the record of Virat Kohli to win the most number of Player of the Match awards. Surya won his
17th POTM award in the 3rd match of the T20 World Cup 2026 and helped India to win the match from a pressure situation to kickstart the campaign with a win. In this article, we are going to discuss the top 5 players with the most Player of the Match awards for India in T20Is.
Most Player of the Match awards for India in T20Is
5. Yuvraj Singh 7
Yuvraj Singh, one of the greatest white middle-order batters in India, has won 7 Player of the Match awards in his T20I career. He has played a total of 58 T20I matches for India, scoring 1177 runs, including 8 half centuries. Yuvraj Singh also won the T20 World Cup with India in 2007/8, where he was the third-highest run scorer for India. The left-handed batter retired from all formats of the game on 19 June 2019.
4. Axar Patel - 8*
Axar Patel has won the 4th most Player of the Match awards for India in T20Is. In 88 matches, Axar has won 8 POTM awards, including one in the semifinal of the T20 World Cup 2024 against England. The 32-year-old is a quality all-rounder who knows how to contribute with both bat and ball effectively. In 88 T20Is, he has scored 700 runs and taken 88 wickets.
3. Rohit Sharma - 14
Rohit Sharma, the 2024 World Cup-winning captain of India, has won the 3rd most Player of the Match awards for India in the shortest format of the game. The 38-year-old has won 14 POTM awards in 159 T20Is. He is also one of the greatest opening batters of India in this format. He has scored the most runs for India in T20Is, 4231, including 5 centuries and 32 half centuries. After winning the 2024 T20 World Cup, Rohit Sharma retired from T20Is.
2. Virat Kohli - 16
Virat Kohli, arguably one of the greatest T20I batters of India, has 16 Player of the Match awards for India. The right-handed batter has played a total of 125 T20I matches for India and scored 4188 runs with an average of 48.69, including 1 century and 38 half-centuries. Like Rohit, Virat Kohli also retired from T20Is after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup in Barbados.
1. Suryakumar Yadav - 17*
India’s current T20I captain, Suryakumar Yadav, has broken Virat Kohli’s record to become the player with the most Player of the Match awards for India in T20Is, with 17 awards. The 35-year-old has also become the 3rd player in the list of players with the most player of the match awards in the world. Only Sikandar Raza and Virandeep Singh from Malaysia are ahead of him in this list. Surya has played a total of 105 T20I matches for India and scored 3114 runs, including 4 centuries and 25 half-centuries.
