England Cricket Players – Modern Day Greats

England are considered as the founders of modern-day cricket. Dating back to the 19th century, England vs Australia was officially Cricket’s first proper international rivalry, as they began competing in the famous Ashes test match series. They are also the current World Champions, having won their maiden ICC World Cup title in 2019 after a thrilling tied super-over finish against New Zealand. There have been several legends who have played for this glorious national team over the decades, but they have a very formidable squad right now as well. Let’s take a look at the most famous England Cricket players list in the current set-up. 

Famous England Cricket Players

Joe Root 

The 4th player of the famous “Big 4”, Joe Root has already had a magnificent Test career for England. Root made his debut for England 8 years ago against India, and since then he has proceeded to assimilate 7823 runs in just 177 innings, at an impressive average of 47.71. Root has hit 17 centuries and a staggering 49 half-centuries, including a mammoth highest score of 254. 

Root has often ended several years as England’s top test batsman, none more so than 2015 and 2016, when he scored 1385 and 1477 runs respectively. He followed that up with 966 , 948 and 851 runs in the next 3 years, to emerge as one of the best test batsmen in the world between 2015 to 2019. Root is England’s current highest test run-scorer against both Australia (1694) and India (1421). 

The England Test captain can also be very handy with the ball, and is known to break many long partnerships with his wristy spin. He is also a very prolific batsman in the ODI format of the game, with an average of more than 50, and was a part of the victorious 2019 World Cup squad. He has scored 5962 runs in 149 matches in ODIs, with only Morgan scoring more runs than him in the all-time list. His batting feats in recent times have made him one of the most famous England cricket players of all time. 

Ben Stokes

Arguably THE best all-rounder in all 3 formats of world cricket currently, Ben Stokes is a freak of nature. The most influential cricketer in the world over the last two years, expect him to be knighted soon for his efforts leading England to their first ever World Cup title in 2019! He scored 5 fifties in that tournament and was also given the Man Of The Match award in the final. Stokes has scored 2682 runs in 81 innings, at a brilliant average of more than 40, studded with 3 centuries. He has hit 20 half centuries and has also hit 75 sixes, batting with an impressive strike rate of 93.94. 

He has also taken 70 wickets in ODI’s, highlighting his importance to the national team, and has also taken some of the best catches in cricket history. Stokes is also very famous for an incredible test innings, where he scored an unbeaten 135 to secure a memorable victory against Australia to tie the Ashes series 2-2. His test record is also very impressive, with 4428 runs and 158 wickets in just 67 matches, ensuring he is consistently ranked as the best all-rounder in the game and one of the most famous England Cricket Players in history. 

Jonny Bairstow

One of the most explosive openers in the England international set up in recent times, Jonny Bairstow has been a revelation in white ball cricket. He has formed a destructive opening pairing with both Jos Buttler as well as Jason Roy in ODI’s and T20’s. 

In just 76 innings, Bairstow has amassed 3207 runs at a staggering average of 47.16, which is one of the highest for any opener who has played more than 50 matches, thereby staking claim to be one of the best ODI batsmen in the world. He also has an incredible strike rate of 103, and has hit 10 centuries and 13 half-centuries, with a highest score of 141. 

Bairstow is a very attacking batsman and is responsible for giving England many amazing starts, none less than his performances at the 2019 ICC World Cup. He hit 2 half-centuries and then proceeded to hit back-to-back centuries against New Zealand and India in crucial games, as England eventually lifted their first ever World Cup title, with Bairstow cementing his status as a modern-day legend and one of the best batsmen in the world of the modern era.  His exploits for the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL has elevated his status as one of the most famous England Cricket players of the modern era.

Jos Buttler

Probably the hardest as well as cleanest hitter of the white cricket ball, Jos Buttler is in a league on his own, when it comes to destructive wicketkeeper-batsmen. Buttler is more than capable to handle any bowling attack in all 3 formats of the game, making him one of England’s most important and consistent players in recent years. Buttler holds the record for the fastest century as well as the second fastest century for England in ODI’s, where he averages over 50.

Buttler has amassed 3855 runs in 145 matches for England in ODIs, and also scored 1551 runs in 74 matches in T20 internationals, and is a permanent fixture in the line-up in both these fixtures. His hard hitting prowess and massive straight sixes have made him a firm crowd-favourite and he is one of the most famous England Cricket players in recent times. 

A late bloomer in the IPL, Buttler initially struggled for Mumbai Indians, but ever since he signed for the Rajasthan Royals, he was turned in to a opener and that led to an incredible turnaround in his form, as he struck 5 consecutive half centuries to help them qualify for the play-offs in 2018.

Dawid Malan 

Though Malan has never played in the IPL yet, he has emerged as the best batsman in the world in 2020 for England in the shortest format of the game. One of the very few exclusive T20 players in the England set up, the left-handed batsman has scored 855 runs in just 19 innings at a staggering average of 53.44, one of the highest in this format. Combined with a strike rate of almost 150, Malan’s consistency is unbelievable. He has hit 1 century and 9 half centuries, in just 19 innings. 

Malan has scored a huge amount of runs in every global T20 league he has played in so far, and we cannot wait to see him make his IPL debut next season, as we believe he is the best T20 batsman in the world. His status as the best batsman in the world in T20 internationals was confirmed with his top rank in the latest ICC T20 Rankings. With an entry into the lucrative Indian Premier League on the cards for 2021, Malan is set to become one of the most famous England Cricket Players in the near future. 

Chris Woakes

Chris Woakes is one of the most effective all-rounders in the world right now, with his lethal spells in tests taking England right to the very top of the test rankings. He can also be a very handy batsman in the lower order, playing some highly technical shots and pacing his innings in a manner that most traditional batsmen would be proud of, let alone a strike bowler. 

Woakes has snapped up 112 wickets 38 tests and a further 149 wickets in 100 ODI innings, to emerge as England’s number 1 striker bowler on many occasions. With the bat, he averages more than 25 in both these formats and even has a test century to his name. He has scored more than 1300 runs and has 5 half-centuries to his name in both formats as well, highlighting his batting prowess and overall importance to the team, which has propelled him to become one of the most famous England Cricket players in recent times. At the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, Woakes spearheaded England’s bowling attack and took 16 wickets to help them to their maiden title. 

Jofra Archer 

Jofra Archer has evolved into one of the most feared bowlers of the modern era in cricket. Taking a cue from traditional West Indian pace bowlers from the 70’s and 80’s , Archer strikes fear in the hearts of top batsmen and has often ended up hurting them with his lethal bouncers. Archer has brought the fear factor back to pace bowling and is extremely effective in every format of the game. 

While Archer is relatively new to the international scene, he already has a huge reputation in global T20 leagues. In his Ashes debut he ended up taking 22 wickets in 4 matches against Australia, and had some brilliant encounters with Steve Smith and co. In just 11 test matches, Archer has taken 38 wickets, while he also has 30 wickets in 17 ODI innings. In the IPL as well, Archer has been hugely successful of late, taking 46 wickets in 35 innings. 

In the last season of the IPL, Archer displayed his underrated batting prowess as well, clubbing several mighty sixes all over the ground, including a stunning 30 run over off Ndidi. His fiery bowling, electric fielding and big hitting abilities make Archer the archetype Modern Day cricketer, and one of the most famous England cricket players in recent times. 

James Anderson 

Veteran Jimmy Anderson is one of the all-time cricket greats, and it’s a testament to his longevity that he is still right up there as England’s bowing spearhead in test cricket, 17 years after making his debut. 

Anderson is a true legend of the game, and is England’s all-time highest wicket taker in both Tests (600) and ODIs (269). With a staggering 887 international wickets for his country, Anderson is in the same bracket as fast bowling greats Courtney Walsh and Glenn McGrath. 

Anderson is one of the best swingers of the red cricket ball in history, bamboozling the very best batsmen in the world for 2 decades now, and his legendary career coupled with his jovial personality have made him one of the most famous England cricket players of all time.