5 bowlers who picked up the most T20I wickets in 2021

The T20I series between the USA and Ireland brought an end to 2021's T20 international matches. Ireland won the last T20I match of the year.

2021 was a big year for the shortest format of the game. Because of the T20 World Cup, all nations focused more on the T20I format.

Batters dominated the game on most occasions, but some bowlers managed to keep a check on the run flow and kept on picking up wickets at regular intervals.

In this listicle today, we will look at the five bowlers who ruled the shortest format of the game and scalped the highest number of T20I wickets in 2021.

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#5 Mustafizur Rahman, Bangladesh - 28 T20I wickets

Mustafizur Rahman was the best bowler for Bangladesh this year

2021 was a historic year for the Bangladesh cricket team. The Asian team dominated the T20I arena and registered their maiden T20I series wins against Australia and New Zealand.

Mustafizur Rahman shone for his nation in their biggest year in T20I cricket. The left-arm pacer bagged 28 wickets in 20 matches, with his best figures being 4/12.

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#4 Waseem Abbas, Malta - 29 T20I wickets

Many T20I matches were played across the world in 2021. Malta's Waseem Abbas played 18 T20Is this year and scalped 29 wickets for his country. He took one four-wicket haul and one five-wicket haul in the shortest format of the game this year.

Abbas set a new record for the most expensive five-wicket haul in T20I cricket history. He conceded 37 runs while taking five wickets in a game against Portugal.

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#3 Dinesh Nakrani, Uganda - 35 T20I wickets

India-born left-arm medium pacer Dinesh Nakrani had a fantastic time in T20I cricket this year. The 30-year-old set a new record for the most wickets by a bowler in a winning cause in a T20I calendar year.

Nakrani also leveled Deepak Chahar's record for best bowling figures in a T20 international innings. He bowled a magical spell of 6/7 against Lesotho earlier this year.

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#2 Tabraiz Shamsi, South Africa - 36 T20I wickets

Tabraiz Shamsi scalped 36 wickets for South Africa

Tabraiz Shamsi was the most successful African bowler in T20I cricket this year. The left-arm wrist spinner tormented the opposition batters by taking 36 wickets in 22 T20Is at an economy rate of less than six runs per over.

Shamsi took two four-wicket hauls in the shortest format of the game in 2021. His best figures were 4/25, while his bowling average was 13.36.

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#1 Wanindu Hasaranga, Sri Lanka - 36 T20I wickets

Wanindu Hasaranga is the number one bowler in the ICC T20I Rankings right now

Sri Lanka leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga also bagged 36 T20I wickets in 2021. But he is above Tabraiz Shamsi on the list because he played fewer matches than the South African star.

Hasaranga accounted for 36 wickets in just 20 T20Is. Like Shamsi, his economy rate was less than six. The Sri Lankan player made history by taking a hat-trick at the T20 World Cup earlier this year.