In a year when the shortest format of the game has touched new heights of power-hitting and tactical suspense, the former Indian cricketer and renowned commentator Abhinav Mukund has unveiled its best T20I XI of 2025.
Former cricketer reveals his best XI of T20I format for 2025
Although the list has a heavy presence of Indian stars who will dominate the 2025 calendar, the biggest talking point remains the absence of high-profile stars. Jasprit BumrahDespite Bumrah’s impressive performances, Mukund has opted for a bowling attack based on current form and the player’s unique impact over the last twelve months, The lineup is a mix of explosive opening power, middle-order stability and a bowling unit that includes some of the most successful “revived” stars of 2025,
Solid top order ft Abhishek Sharma
Mukund’s opening pair reflects the “fearless” brand of cricket that has defined 2025. Abhishek Sharma The pole position comes after a record-breaking year where he scored a mammoth 135 off 54 balls against England. its partner is sri lanka Pathum NissankaJoe has been a model of consistency, finishing the year with 2,345 career T20I runs and a brilliant 107 against India in the Asia Cup.
of England jos buttler Occupies the third position. Even as he balances national duty with the IPL, Buttler’s 2025 T20I strike rate remains tremendous at around 149, providing the perfect bridge between the powerplay and middle overs.
- Abhishek Sharma in 2025: 21 matches | 859 runs 193.46 strike rate
- Pathum Nissanka in 2025: 18 matches | 625 runs 149.16 strike rate
- Jos Buttler in 2025: 15 matches | 480 runs 164.38 strike rate
Young guns and all-round depth
The middle order is dominated by India’s new age superstars. Tilak Verma He has earned a spot after a stellar year, highlighted by a brilliant innings of 73 off 42 balls against South Africa in December. Then comes the “finisher” pair tim david And the South African sensation dewald brevisBrewis, nicknamed “Baby AB”, really burst onto the international stage in 2025, breaking the record by scoring 125 not out from 56 balls against Australia – the highest individual T20I score for South Africa,
Leading the overall department hardik pandyaWho enjoyed Vintage 2025. Pandya went ahead Yuvraj SinghHolding the record for most “50+ runs and 1+ wickets” in T20Is, his December series against the Proteas ended with 142 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 186.84.
- Tilak Verma in 2025: 20 matches | 567 runs 129.15 strike rate
- Tim David in 2025: 14 matches | 395 runs 197.50 strike rate
- Dewald Brevis in 2025: 17 matches | 464 runs 176.42 strike rate
- Hardik Pandya in 2025: 15 matches | 302 runs 153.29 strike rate
Also read: Harsha Bhogle selected the test team of year 2025, Pat Cummins became the captain
Jasprit Bumrah-less bowling attack
The most controversial aspect of the eleven is Bumrah’s exclusion. Instead, Mukund has rewarded New Zealand’s volume of wicket-taking jacob duffy and India’s Varun ChakrabortyNotably, Bumrah had a strong year in T20Is in 2025, becoming only the second Indian to reach the 100-wicket milestone and performing exceptionally well across various series, He finished the year as India’s third-highest T20I wicket-taker,
Chakravarthy also had a phenomenal year in T20Is in 2025, finishing as India’s leading wicket-taker and joint-highest among all Test-playing nations with 36 wickets. His stellar performances made him the No. 1 ranked T20I bowler in the world and earned him the Player of the Series award in the home series against South Africa. Duffy also became the world No. 1 T20I bowler in April 2025 after demolishing Pakistan, where he took 4 for 14. His impressive performance made him the first Kiwi bowler to take more than 30 T20I wickets in a calendar year. Mukund also went along Mohammad Nawaz And Mustafizur Rahman To complete your bowling attack.
- Varun Chakraborty in 2025: 20 matches | 36 wickets 5/24 BBI
- Jacob Duffy in 2025: 21 matches | 35 wickets 4/14 BBI
- Mohammad Nawaz in 2025: 26 matches | 36 wickets 5/19 BBI
- Mustafizur Rahman in 2025: 20 matches | 26 wickets 3/11 BBI
Abhinav Mukund’s best T20I XI of 2025: Abhishek Sharma, Pathum Nissanka, Jos Buttler, Tilak Verma, Tim David, Dewald Brewis, Hardik Pandya, Mohammad Nawaz, Jacob Duffy, Varun Chakravarthy, Mustafizur Rahman.
Also read: Abhinav Mukund reveals his best Test playing XI for 2025; Temba Bavuma has been made captain
