Top 3 Cricketers to Win Both IPL Title And T20 World Cup in First Attempt

Often hailed as the ultimate saga of action-packed cricket and fierce rivalries, both the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the T20 World Cup are considered to be the most popular, prestigious and intense cricket formats on a global level. While numerous iconic cricketers in the world have had the opportunity to play for their teams and themselves in both the formats, only a handful of those players have been able to clinch both the prestigious tournaments of the cricket world at their first attempt.

While even the most prominent cricketers, including Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli have all struggled to clinch their debut IPL season along with their debut T20 World Cup, a few cricketers have been able to achieve the feat and glorify their names in the annals of the international cricket format.

In this article we will take a look at the top three cricketers who have been able to achieve the golden feat of clinching their debut T20 World Cup and IPL seasons at their first attempt.

 

1. Yusuf Pathan

Former Indian professional cricketer and current politician of the Trinamool Congress, Yusuf Pathan, made his debut for the national Indian cricket team of India in 2007 and continued to represent the Indian side till 2012 across all international cricket formats including One-Day Internationals (ODIs), Test and T20 internationals. Yusuf Khan Pathan was an official member of the men in blue squad that clinched the T20 World Cup in 2008 and the cricket World Cup in 2011.

Additionally, Yusuf Pathan, popularly referred to as “UC Pathan”, made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for the Rajasthan Royals squad in 2008 and clinched the season. Pathan appeared in a total of sixteen matches and scored a total of 435* runs at a stellar average of 31.07. Yusuf Pathan has witnessed an illustrious cricketing career as a hard-hitting batsman that spanned over decades and the fact that he has been able to capture both IPL & T20 World cup titles in his debut season speaks volumes about his glitzy career.

 

An anecdote of Yusuf Pathan’s brilliant career statistics in the T20 internationals and the Indian Premier League (IPL) is provided below:

Yusuf Pathan’s T20Is Career Statistics:

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
ODIs	57	41	11	810	123*	27.00	713	113.60	2	3	62	43	17	0
T20Is	22	18	5	236	37*	18.15	161	146.58	0	0	11	17	9	0

 

Yusuf Pathan’s IPL Career Statistics:

Year	Mat	No	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4S	6S	CT
Career	174	44	3204	100	29.13	2241	142.97	1	13	262	158	43

 

2. Sunil Narine

One of the finest and most dreadful spin bowlers in the history of international cricket, West Indian cricketer Sunil Philip Narine made his international cricket debut in 2011 and officially announced his retirement from the international cricket format in November 2023.

Although Sunil Narine has decided to call it quits, his rich legacy continues to reverberate in the annals of international cricket to inspire the younger generations and aspiring bowlers. Sunil Narine played a major role in the West Indian victory in the 2012 T20 World Cup as he picked up the most crucial wicket of Lasith Malinga in the finals, leading the West Indies cricket team to a memorable World Cup triumph. Additionally, Sunil Narine made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2012 IPL season and has been a mainstay for the franchise ever since.

The king of spin bowling picked up a total of twenty-four wickets throughout his debut IPL season and played a crucial role in driving the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise to a formidable victory. The bowling stalwart of the KKR franchise, Sunil Narine, was also honored with his first MVP award at the end of IPL Season 2012 for his outstanding performances throughout the tournament.

An anecdote of Sunil Narine’s career statistics in the T20 internationals and the Indian Premier League (IPL) is provided below:

Sunil Narine T20Is Career Statistics:

Format

Mat

Inns

Balls

Runs

Wkts

BBI

BBM

Ave

Econ

SR

4w

5w

10w

T20Is

51

49

1102

1105

52

4/12

4/12

21.25

6.01

21.1

1

0

0

 

Sunil Narine IPL Career Statistics:

Year	Mat	No	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4S	6S	CT	ST
Career	176	20	1534	109	17.04	925	165.84	1	7	164	1	7	164

 

3. Sanju Samson

Sanju Viswanath Samson, popularly referred to as “Sanju Samson”, rose to prominence after making his debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and was later picked up by the selectors of the Indian cricket team owing to his ground-breaking and match-winning innings.

Sanju Samson made his IPL debut in 2012 for Kolkata Knight Riders. Although the cricketer couldn’t get a chance to display his batting prowess, his squad, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), managed to clinch the IPL season in 2012. Additionally, owing to his stellar performances in the IPL format, Sanju Samson got his much-anticipated call-up to play for his nation, India, at the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Along with Rishabh Pant, Sanju Viswanath Samson was selected in the national Indian cricket squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup as a wicketkeeper. With top-notch wicket-keeping skills and hard-hitting batting abilities, the twenty-nine-year-old cricketer from Kerala, Sanju Samson, has undoubtedly dominated the international craving arena and earned a distinguished career for himself after clinching both IPL and T20 World Cup titles in his first attempt.

An anecdote of Sanju Samson’s career statistics in the T20 internationals and the Indian Premier League (IPL) is provided below:

Sanju Samson T20Is Career Statistics:

Format	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
ODIs	16	14	5	510	108	56.66	512	99.60	1	3	34	22	9	2
T20Is	25	22	2	374	77	18.70	281	133.09	0	1	31	15	14	4

 

Sanju Samson IPL Career Statistics:

Year	Mat	Runs	HS	Ave	S/R	100s
Career	167	4,419	119	30.69	138.96	3