8. Martin Guptill – New Zealand
Martin Guptill plays domestic cricket for Auckland and club cricket for Suburbs New Lynn. A four-ball duck in his first innings, and 99 in his second, marked his first-class cricket debut in March 2006. During the second half of the 2011 season, Guptill played for Derbyshire County Cricket Club in English county cricket.
Guptill was named to New Zealand's team for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. He then became the second batsman in T20I cricket to reach 3,000 runs against Scotland in New Zealand's T20 World Cup match on November 3, 2021.
7. Rassie van der Dussen – South Africa
In his T20 cricket game history, Rassie van der Dussen was selected as an injury substitute player for St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the 2018 Caribbean Premier League. His selection was based on his outstanding performance in the Sunfoil series of 2017/2018 where he scored 959 runs in 10 matches.
Van der Dussen was chosen to play for the Vancouver Knights in the players' draft for the inaugural edition of the Global T20 Canada tournament on June 3, 2018. With 255 runs in 8 matches, he was the top run-scorer for the Vancouver Knights in the tournament.
He was named to the Highveld Lions in the same month for the 2018/2019 season, after showing a real transformation in his T20 game, demonstrating more urgency in scoring.
Van der Dussen was named to the South Africa team for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup in In September 2021.
6. Aaron Finch – Australia
Right-handed batsman Aaron James Finch is known for his aggressive style of play and ability to finish matches. In 2006, Finch was named to Australia's Under-19 team for the World Cup. He made his first-class debut against the touring Indians in December 2007.
Finch began his career as a middle-order batsman, but the club side sometimes needed him as a floater and batted up the order whenever required. He has his best season in 2009 when he did outstanding play in the T20 Big Bash tournament.
Finch was appointed as Australia team's captain for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 in August 2021. He led Australia to their maiden T20 World Cup victory, defeating New Zealand by 8 wickets in the final.
5. Devon Conway – New Zealand
Devon Conway was selected for New Zealand's Test squad to play against England in April 2021, and for the 2019/2021 ICC World Test Championship final. Conway debuted for New Zealand against England in a Test match on June 2, 2021.
Conway became New Zealand's 12th century-hitter on his Test debut, and the first visiting batsman to hit a century at Lord's after Sourav Ganguly. He set a record for the highest-scoring debutant in the men's Test with a score of 200.
He also became the oldest player to score a double century on his Test debut at the age of 29 years and 329 days. He was then selected for New Zealand’s team in August 2021 to play for the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
Conway won his second award for the best Test player of the season. In the first-class arena, he won the Redpath Cup for outstanding batting performance, making an impression in his initial outing in Tests, batting a double-century at Lord's, and completing the season with 767 runs at 63.91 average.
4. Dawid Malan – England
Dawid Malan is a left-handed batsman and occasional leg-spin bowler. He formerly represented Boland in South Africa (2005/2006 season) and the MCC Young Cricketers in 2006. On July 7, 2006, Malan made his 1st XI debut for Middlesex in a Twenty20 Cup match against Surrey at The Oval.
Malan is currently 4th in ICC's T20I rankings. After joining Punjab Kings last season amid much fanfare, the Englishman played only one game where he scored 26 runs.
During England's tour of India in March 2021, Malan scored 1,000 runs in 24 innings, making him the fastest T20I batsman. He was recalled for the third Test of the 2021 Test series against India where he scored 70 in the first innings.
The following month, he was drafted into England’s team for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. In April 2022, Malan was purchased by the Trent Rockets for the 2022 season of The Hundred.
3. Mohammad Rizwan – Pakistan
Mohammad Rizwan is one of the seven T20I players to watch out for during the PSL 7 playoffs.
When we talk about the shortest format of the game, the Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter led the roost in 2021. Rizwan scored 1,326 runs in only 29 matches, averaging 73.66 and hitting at a strike rate of 134.89.
In addition to his exploits with the bat, he was as reliable as ever behind the stumps, helping Pakistan reach the semis of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021, where he finished as the third-highest run-scorer.
With six half-centuries in 10 innings, he has lived up to his billing as one of the top T20I batters in the world. He has also led his team to a strong record heading into the playoffs. In the group stage, Rizwan has been well supported by Shan Masood, who scored 457 runs.
2. Aiden Markram – South Africa
An assertive batsman by nature, Markram was selected as the substitute for AB de Villiers and he has lived up to the expectations of his selection.
His classic batting performance in all formats caught the attention of the cricket community. Considering his age, he can be the next big player in South African cricket.
Known as a solid Test opener, Markram's limited-overs game rise by leaps and bounds in 2021, specifically his power-hitting game in the middle order. Makram smashed 570 runs at 43.84 and six half-centuries, striking at 148.82 in 18 matches. He also proved to be a reliable part-time spin bowler, contributing 5 wickets.
1. Babar Azam – Pakistan
The ICC Player of the Month award for March 2022 has gone to Pakistan captain Babar Azam. With his 196 against Australia in the second Test in Karachi, Azam was at his brilliant best throughout March and won the coveted monthly award defeating West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite and Australia skipper Pat Cummins.
He is also the first player to win the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award on two occasions, previously holding the title in April 2021.
Following Usman Khawaja and Abdullah Shafique, Azam finished as the third-highest run-scorer in the recently ended Benaud-Qadir Trophy. He scored 390 runs at an average of 78 in five outings, including a century and two half-centuries. His game-saving 196 in the second innings of the second Test was the highlight of the series.
Azam continued to impress in the ODI series with crucial knocks in the first two games. In the first ODI, he scored a fantastic 118 to lead Pakistan to a six-wicket victory in the second round after scoring 57 in Pakistan's 88-run loss.
