Here are top 10 most popular cricketers of all time. These cricket players having great fame in all formats of cricket Test, ODI and T20 in all categories batting, bowling and fielding.
The Greatest Cricketer of All Time
These are top 10 of the greatest cricketers of all time, each with their unique contributions and records that have left an indelible mark on the sport:
| Rank | Player | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sir Don Bradman | Australia |
| 2 | Imran Khan | Pakistan |
| 3 | Sachin Tendulkar | India |
| 4 | Sir Garfield Sobers | West Indies |
| 5 | Sir Ian Botham | England |
| 6 | Shane Warne | Australia |
| 7 | Sir Viv Richards | West Indies |
| 8 | Brian Lara | West Indies |
| 9 | Jaques Kallis | South Africa |
| 10 | MS Dhoni | India |
These legendary cricketers have not only achieved remarkable statistics but have also captivated fans worldwide with their exceptional skills, charisma, and passion for the game. They are a testament to the enduring legacy of cricket and continue to inspire future generations of players.
The 10 Most Popular Cricketers of All time
10. Brett Lee
Brett Lee known by his nickname ‘Binga’ is a former Australian cricketer. He was recognized as the 2nd fastest bowlers in world cricket after Shoaib Akhtar. He is an athletic fielder and useful lower-order batsman, with a batting average exceeding 20 in Test cricket. Together with Mike Hussey, he has held the record for highest 7th wicket partnership for Australia in ODIs since 2005–06 with 123.
9. Muralidaran
Muttiah Muralitharan is a Sri Lankan cricketer who was rated the greatest Test match bowler ever. He is the first wrist-spinning off-spinner in the history of the game. Muttiah Muralitharan holds a number of world records.
He is the highest wicket takers in Test and ODI cricket. Murali took 800 in test and 534 wickets in ODI cricket. He is only player to take 10 wickets in a Test in four consecutive matches, and to take 50 or more wickets against every Test playing nation.
8. Shoaib Akhtar
The legend of Pakistan cricket Shoaib Akhtar is widely regarded to be one of the best fastest and most feared bowlers in the history of international cricket. He was called ‘Pindi Express’ , Tiger and ‘The Terrarest of Cricket’. In 1999 Akhtar captured eight wickets in the Asian Test championship match at Calcutta, India – In this match he clean bold Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar at successive deliveries.
Ironically it was the first ball he ever bowled to Sachin Tendulkar. He is also known as one of only three bowlers to have ever broken the 100 mph barrier in cricket history, with a delivery of 101.3 mph, during the 2003 World Cup against England, and this delivery stands as the fastest recorded to date.
7. Virat Kohli
Currently captains the India national team, Virat Kohli is one of most popular cricketers. Kohli holds several Indian batting records including;
- the fastest ODI century,
- fastest batsman to 5,000 ODI runs
- the fastest to 10 ODI centuries.
Among the T20I world records held by Kohli are;
- fastest batsman to 1,000 runs,
- most runs in a calendar year
- most fifties in the format.
He also holds the records of most runs in a single tournament of both the World Twenty20 and the IPL.
6. Chris Gayle
Cool cricketer Chris Gayle is a West Indies crickter. He is well known for his huge and maximum sixes. He has been credited to fuelling West Indies’ total of 205 against Australia in the ICC T20 World Cup semifinal-1 which was the highest total of the tournament. Gayle is one of only four players who have scored two triple centuries at Test level: 317 against South Africa in 2005, and 333 against Sri Lanka in 2010.
5. Brian Lara
Brian Lara is West Indian international cricket player, popularly nicknamed as “The Prince of Port of Spain” or simply “The Prince”. He is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. He topped the Test batting rankings on several occasions and holds several cricketing records. Lara also holds the record for the highest individual score in a test innings after scoring 400 not out against England at Antigua in 2004.
4. M S Dhoni
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an Indian cricketer and the most famous and successful captain of the Indian national cricket team in all three forms of the game and the Chennai Super Kings cricket team. He led the Indian team to the number one position in ICC rankings in Test cricket for the first time. Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20.
Dhoni is the first Indian player who achieve the ICC ODI Player of the Year award in 2008 and 2009. He recived many more awards like the ‘Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna’ award and the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian honour in 2009. The TIME magazine added him in its “Time 100” list of 100 most influential people of 2011. SportsPro has rated MS Dhoni as the 16th most remarkable athlete in the world.
3. Wasim Akram
King of Swing, Wasim Akram most famous Pakistani cricketer. Akram is regarded as the greatest fast bowlers in the history of cricket. He holds the world record for most wickets in List A cricket with 881. He was the first bowler to reach the 500-wicket in ODI cricket. Akram was ranked as the best bowler in ODI of all time in 2002. Akram is considered to the Best Captain. He won 17 Man-of-the-Match awards in 104 tests and 22 in ODIs. He took 4 hat-tricks in International cricket. Akram hit 12 sixes in that, most by anyone in a test innings.
2. Sachin Tendulkar
Little Master, Sachin Tendulkar is an Indian cricketer widely considered to be one of the greatest batsmen of all time. He is the leading run-scorer and century maker in Test and one-day international cricket. Tendulkar is the first player to score a double century in ODI cricket. He also holds the world record for playing highest number of Test and ODI matches.
1. Shahid Khan Afridi
Shahid Afridi, best known as Boom Boom Afridi is a most famous Pakistani cricketer. He is known for his aggressive batting style, and holds the record for the fastest ODI century just on 37 balls, as well as scoring 32 runs in a single over.
Moreover, out of the seven fastest ODI centuries of all time, Afridi has produced three of them. He also hold the record of maximum sixes and the largest six in ODI. He hit the longest ever six in the history of ODIs against Australia. Afridi has Maximum ‘Man of The Match’ and 2nd Highest wicket takers in T20 Cricket. (source for greatest cricketers of all time.