The most popular cricket commentators on Twitter

Commentators are quite often the mouthpieces of an ardent fan. They present the true picture of the happenings on the ground while ensuring that they dont end up interfering between a fan and the proceedings in the middle.The debate as to who are the most popular cricket commentators in the planet is perhaps, recurring and everlasting. It shouldn't be a bad idea to rate the hold of the eminent pundits over the masses in terms of their fan following on Twitter, the widely popular social media platform.Heres the slideshow depicting the popularity of cricket commentators on Twitter:

#8 Alan Wilkins - @alanwilkins22

Alan Wilkins was a left-arm seam bowler who represented the leading County sides during his cricketing career. He began his career at Glamorgan in 1976 and is known for his heroics in the 1977 County season, wherein he notched up 47 wickets including a couple of 5-fers. He went on to play for Gloucestershire in 1979. His hopes of representing England were shattered post a serious shoulder injury in 1983.

He moved to South Africa in a bid to pursue a career in commentary. Apart from being a part of the leading cricketing events, he has commentated on multiple Rugby World Cups and Wimbledon Championships. Wilkin’s solacing voice is a real treat, his mental acumen being sublime.

Alan Wilkins is a regular tweeter and is very popular among the ‘Tweeps’ as he’s followed by over 32K people.

#7 Mpumelelo Mbangwa - @mmbangwa

Mpumelelo Mbangwa is a former Zimbabwean cricketer. Despite belonging to a below-par side, he had a decent career as a right-arm swing bowler; registering 32 Test wickets against his name in 15 Test matches at 31.43.

His ‘genuine slow bowling’ might not have earned much accolades, but his fine commentating skills earn him immense respect cricketing circles His unorthodox, African version of English is loved by cricket lovers all over then world.

With over 35K followers, Pommie is the sixth most popular cricket commentator on Twitter.

#6 Dean Jones - @ProfDeano

Dean Jones was pure Aussie bread, in and out. Deano’s approach to the game was as aggressive as any in the world. He redefined the way cricket was played by doing all sorts of things that weren’t even though of before; some of them being taking a stroll down the wicket to fast bowlers, wildly running between the wickets, and throwing his body here, there and everywhere as a fielder.

The high standards that he had set for himself as a top-order bat could be perceived with the fact that he averaged over 44 in Test cricket, ODI cricket, first-class cricket and List-A cricket.

As a commentator, he has been blunt and square. He isn’t a poor tweeter by any stretch of imagination; over 11000 tweets standing testimony. With 47.3K followers, Deano earns the fifth place in this ‘distinguished’ list of pandits.

#5 Mike Atherton - @AthersMike

Touted by many purists as the best cricket commentator of this generation, Mike Atherton was an opening batsman in the classical English mould. Atherton prized his wicket highly; his solid defence was hard to get through. In 115 Test matches, he piled up 7728 runs at 37.69; more than fair for an English opener.

He ably captained his national team for five years, although with little success. His second innings as a commentator has been nothing short of prolific – an aberration among the host of players-turned-commentators. Atherton combines a soothing voice with sensible talks.

Despite him not being an avid tweeter, his 63K loyal fans wait for his occasional opinion.

#4 David Lloyd - @BumbleCricket

It is appallingly rare for a player to score over 19000 first-class runs and still being told that he isn’t good enough to be at the big stage. It is all the more rare to see that player taking the setbacks in his stride and moving on gleefully.

David Lloyd is one such instance. Nicknamed ‘Bumble’, Lloyd did underachieve in the cricketing field. But he made up for it with his prowess in the commentary box. Master of many a catchphrase, Bumble is known for his humorous, witty remarks and repartees.

As a tweeter, He is miles ahead of the rest with over 40K tweets. He stands third in this list with 370K followers.

#3 Sanjay Manjrekar - @sanjaymanjrekar

Born in a family of cricketers, the passion for the game came naturally to him. His great uncle, DD Hindlekar, and his father, VL Manjrekar represented the country at different times and commanding a lot of respect. Pressure was always there on Sanjay to make his way to the top level; carrying forward the legacy of the family.

He was up for the challenge. He played 37 Tests and 74 ODIs for India before being sidelined credit to the rise of Sorav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. He will be known for his gritty hundreds against the daunting West Indian pace attack.

His commentary career, though, has been fulfilling. Manjrekar presents honest and passionate views about the sport; appreciated by one and all. His social media skills are decent as he has over 5K tweets to his name and has drawn over 411K followers.

#2 Harsha Bhogle - @bhogleharsha

A chemical engineering degree from Osmania University in Hyderabad followed by an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad must translate into a Directorial post in a leading business firm. It wasn’t to be with Harsha Bhogle, for whom passion for cricket prevailed over everything else.

Harsha began his commentating career at the age of 19 for AIR. Ever since then, he has worked for ABC, ESPN Star Sports and BBC. His prime motive is to make sure that the telecast is absolutely entertaining while it makes sense, at the same time. Enthusiasm and penchant for detail make him an exceptional commentator, in the true sense of the word.

With 21K+ tweets and over 1.1m followers, Harsha takes the 2nd position on the distinguished list

#1 Shane Warne - @warne888

708 Test wickets say it all about this feisty Aussie. A maestro of the most difficult art in the game, Warne is the greatest leggie to ever step foot in a cricket field. Rip, guile, filght – his craft encompassed the complete mix. He made us fall in love with leg spin, more than anything else.

Warney is an occasional commentator. But when and how he does, we get a peep into his free flowing mindset. Commentating on the limited-overs fixtures, he is found to be disgruntled and dismissive of the fielding restrictions in place. Moreover, his perpetual passion for the sport manifests in the form of exhortations from the commentary box for the bowlers to pitch it up!

Warne tops this list with over 1.5m followers on Twitter.