Top 5 most destructive T20 top orders in world cricket right now

Virat Kohli has emerged out as the best T20I batsman for IndiaThe ICC World T20 2016 is just around the corner, and since the event is being held in India, the batsman-friendly conditions warrant for a strong batting line-up,from the participating teams.Moreover, the T20 format has always been the one for the batsmen- not that the others haven't become similar- and a repetition of what we saw during the Asia Cup T20 2016, wherein the pitches assisted the bowlers throughout the tournament and only one 150+ score was registered, is highly unlikely in India.Given such circumstances, and the history of cricket matches that have been played in this part of the subcontinent, it is imperative for each team to bolster their batting department and put in place a strong batting line-up.The batsmen batting at numbers 1, 2, and 3 define the pace and the tempo of the innings, as the middle and the lower middle-order need a set platform to showcase their prowess, especially in the shortest format of the game.Here, we have a look at the top 5most destructive T20 top orders in world cricket that could play a major role in shaping the course of the tournament.

#5 England: Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Joe Root

Joe Root has been the fulcrum of the English batting line-up

The pair of Alex Hales and Jason Roy has done considerably well for England in limited-overs cricket since they started to open together post the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.

The two of them might not have big scores to show their T20I credentials of late, but the opening stands that they have been providing England with, has often laid the platform for their big-hitting middle order, comprising of Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, and Jonny Bairstow to launch the innings towards the end.

Following them at number 3 is Joe Root, one of England’s most promising batsmen, and the only man from the top order to play all three formats of the game on a consistent basis.

Again, the lack of sample space, when it comes to the number of T20I that England have played in 2016- just two, against South Africa- makes Root’s form look ordinary in the shorter format.

To get a better picture, one can look into the ODI series that preceded the T20I series against the Proteas, to find that Root had scored back-to-back centuries along with a 50 in the five-match ODI series.

His scores from that series read 27, 109, 125, 38, and 52. Add to that his ability to tackle spin successfully, and he becomes the best customer for the turning tracks that we might get in the World T20.

Root, in many ways, has been the fulcrum of England’s batting order, be it any format, and he would look to do the same in the World Cup as well.

#4 New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson and Martin Guptill would be very crucial to NZ’s success in the tournament

The 30-ball 90 kept aside against Sri Lanka last year, Martin Guptill has done enough of late in T20 cricket as well to pose a threat to all kinds of bowling attacks. That he has failed to score a 40 just once in this past 5 T20I innings, all in 2016, is a testimony to this fact.

Guptill’s figures read, 42, 87*, 2, 63, and 58, and if one considers his ODI form in it- that boasts of 60 50+ scores in his past 10 innings, it might just make him the most deadly opener to feature in the World T20. Overall, he has 1666 runs to his name in T20I, and is only behind Brendon McCullum in the last of NZ’s top T20I run-getters.

Guptill’s opening partner, Tom Latham has played a solid support to the marauding at the other end, and in the process, has also chipped with runs of his own.

As for number 3, New Zealand have one of the world’s best batsmen in their arsenal, Kane Williamson. Williamson has 844 runs from 30 T20I at a strike-rate of 127.68, and has made the number 3 position his very own in the batting line-up.

He has a 30+ score in each of his last 5 T20I innings including 3 half-centuries. His scores read 33, 72*, 70, 32*, and 53. Such consistency is rarely matched in a format as unpredictable and risky as T20 cricket.

#3 Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch, Usman Khawaja

The destructive duo of Finch and Warner would be a problem fisrt up for all the opposition teams

Although Australia had lost 5 T20I in a row before their last-ball victory against South Africa in the 2nd T20I, they have three of the most destructive T20I batsmen right at the top of the order in David Warner, Aaron Finch, and Usman Khawaja.

Warner is a batsman tailor-made for the shortest format of the game and made his debut first as a T20I batsman before gradually moving to the longer formats. The testimony to this fact is him being Australia’s highest T20I run-scorer with 1562 runs to his name as a threatening strike-rate of 141.

His game-changing knock of 77 (40) against South Africa while chasing a target in excess of 200 speaks volumes his ability to bat under pressure. The southpaw at the top can quickly shift the game’s momentum in Australia’s favour.

If Warner has been deadly, his partner-in-crime Aaron Finch has been nothing short of the same. If anything, after being relieved of his duties as the captain of the side he would now be able to bat more freely.

Finch has 916 runs in 26 T20I games at an average of nearly 40, and he surpasses his opening partner, Warner, in terms of strike-rates, as the right-hander strikes the ball at 152.92.

To pounce on the platform provided by these two, or to make one on his own should they fail, is Usman Khawaja, who, after a magical Big Bash League Season, was finally picked by the selectors for the World T20.

Since his return to international cricket in 2015, Khawaja as had a dream run. He scored 504 runs from 3 Tests at a befuddling average of 176 in 2015, while in 2016 he has amassed 209 runs from 3 Tests at an average of nearly 70.

In 4 BBL games that Khawaja played this season, he scored runs at an average of 172.50 while finishing second the run-scorers’ list with a tally of 345 runs.

#2 South Africa: Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis

AB de Villiers would use all of his India experience to get his side closer to their maiden ICC title

For a team that has recently been dethroned from the top of the ICC Test rankings, their limited-overs record suggests an entirely different story. They defeated England in the ODI as well as T20I series at home, and are tied with Australia at 1-1 in the ongoing T20I series.

A large chunk of credit for these victories goes to their solid top order comprising the quartet of Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, and Faf du Plessis.

De Kock had been in and out of Proteas set-up of late, but since his return to Test cricket with a spectacular maiden century against England, he hasn’t looked back. He followed his Test hundred with two ODI centuries scoring 138 and 135 against the same opponent.

Although he has just one score of a 28-ball 44 against Australia to show has a recent knock, his hitting prowess can be questioned only by a few, especially after his exploits in India last year in the ODI series wherein he had also scored two centuries.

As for AB de Villiers, his love for Indian grounds is well known to everyone. De Villiers averages 70.35 in ODIs in India and has scored over 1000 runs. He is also South Africa’s second-highest T20I run-scorer, only behind JP Duminy, with 1258 runs at a strike-rate of 128.89.

De Villiers scored three centuries in the 2015 ODI series against India.

The South African captain, Faf du Plessis averages 41 in T20I, the highest among his teammates. He has 991 T20I runs, and is in prolific form of late, scoring blistering knocks of 40 (18) and 79 (41) in the two T20I against Australia. The strike-rate of 135.75 only adds to his credentials as a powerful impact player in T20I.

#1 India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli

Rohit Sharma would look to continue his sublime run of form in the World T20 as well

The home team has been everybody's favourite for the tournament and rightly so, for it has plenty of good reasons to justify its claims for the coveted title. One such reason is India's top order comprising two of the most destructive limited-overs batsmen in world cricket.

The opening duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan has been a revelation for India in limited-overs cricket since the day they paired together for the first time in 2013.

Although Shikhar Dhawan has been in poor form of late and his stats in T20 cricket, he has, on occasions successfully played the supporting role to Rohit Sharma, a man who has been in prolific form since the limited-overs series against South Africa last year.

Statistically speaking, Rohit averages a decent 32.54 in T20I and his current form, that has seen him amass three half-centuries, and three fifty-plus scores in his past 11 T20I innings. His strike-rate 128.63 is decent enough for an opener. His maiden T20I century in Dharamshala against South Africa last year would still be fresh in the fans’ minds.

If Rohit has been good, Kohli has been undoubtedly the best T20I batsman, based on recent form. He averages a staggering 52.61 in T20I, way ahead of his peers, and strikes the ball at 133.07.

Kohli is India's highest T20I run-scorer, and except the Asia Cup opener between India and Bangladesh, the Delhi batsman has scored at least a 40 in his previous 8 outings- all in 2016.

This includes three consecutive fifties against Australia- 90*, 59, and 50- and match-winning efforts of 49, 56*, and 41* against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh in the Asia Cup 2016.