4 Indian players who won the Man of the Tournament award in ICC tournaments. 

The ICC World Cup is the flagship tournament of International Cricket. After every four years, the top Cricketing nations from all across the globe fight it out to become the World Champion. In the last 20 years, ICC has added two more regular tournaments, The Champions Trophy and the T20 World Cup.

Cricket is a team game. A team requires a collective effort from all the members in order to win a tournament. However, sometimes an individual piece of brilliance can prove to be the difference. It is a dream of every player to represent the nation at the highest level and be the difference between loss and victory, the dream to be the man of the tournament in an ICC event.

But, out of all the hundreds of players featuring in the tournament, only one player gets the prize. So, with less than a year to go for the commencement of the ICC World Cup, let us have a look at all the Indians who have received the prestigious "Man of The Tournament" award in the ICC tournaments.

Shikhar Dhawan-ICC Champions Trophy 2013

Before the start of the Champions Trophy tournament in 2013, a lot of questions were raised on the lack of technique in the Indian Top order in English conditions. The relatively younger team went past all the expectations and won the tournament in a dominant fashion. The team played as a unit and every player contributed, but the left-handed opener stood out and won the man of the tournament award.

The Delhi lad had an amazing tournament and finished as the top scorer with 363 runs in just 5 innings at an average of 90.75. The southpaw started off brilliantly with centuries in the first two games against South Africa and West Indies. He also played decently in the remaining matches, most of which were curtailed by rain.

He was well supported by the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli with the bat. In the bowling department Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma and Ashwin had a great tournament, with the three finishing among top 5 wicket takers.

All of this ensured a dominant performance by the men in blue, as they won the trophy without breaking a sweat.

Yuvraj Singh-ICC World Cup 2011

Without any iota of doubt, Yuvraj Singh is one of the biggest match-winners Indian Cricket has ever produced. But, leading into the famous 2011 edition of the ICC World Cup, questions were being raised on his place in the World Cup squad. In the 2010 season, he had struggled for consistency. But during the World Cup, he took his game to an altogether different level.

Australia v India - 2011 ICC World Cup Quarter-Final

India were amongst the top contenders for winning the World Cup, given the great balanced squad they had, to go along with the home advantage. But, the way the team played throughout the tournament was really amazing. Every game, it looked like that the Men in Blue had stepped into the field only to win. It was a tournament in which every player contributed at some stage and the players complimented each other really well.

Yuvraj Singh was one of the major reasons behind the triumph. He had an unbelievable tournament. In the 9 games, the southpaw scored an impressive 362 runs, mainly batting at number 5 and also got a whopping 15 wickets. Yuvi scored a ton against West Indies in addition to the 4 half centuries he scored in the tournament. He also grabbed a 5-wicket haul against Ireland.

After having such an amazing World Cup and helping the team win the Trophy, Yuvraj deservedly won the Man of The Tournament award. It feels even more special when we look at the fact that the man was fighting some serious illness issues at that time.

Sachin Tendulkar-ICC World Cup 2003

It is very difficult to prepare a list of cricket records, that doesn't have Sachin's name on it. The 'God' of cricket has had an illustrious career, holding many breathtaking records. The little master always enjoyed batting in World Cups as he is the man with most runs in the history of World Cups as well as in a single edition.

Sachin Tendulkar of India in action

Sachin batted beautifully in almost all the World Cups, but there was something special about the 2003 edition. It is not only about the number of runs he scored, but also the way he batted. He looked in ominous touch throughout the tournament and helped India reach the final, which they lost to Australia.

Sachin won the Man of the Tournament award as he outscored everyone by getting to a tally of 673 runs. It is still a record and will take some effort to get broken. He got the runs in 11 innings, at an average of over 61.

Sachin had a dream tournament. He found able support from Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. With the ball, Zaheer Khan, Srinath and Ashish Nehra produced wonderful spells. But the team could not get past the last hurdle. India finished second best to the dominant Australian side.

Virat Kohli - ICC T20 World Cup 2014 and 2016

Marching on the path of Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli is also another batsman who finds his name in almost every record book. He is already considered as a legend by many greats of the game. He is the only player to win Man of The Tournament award in two separate ICC events.

India v South Africa - ICC World Twenty20 Bangladesh 2014

Virat Kohli is one of India's biggest match winners. With his recent exploits in Test cricket, he has proved that he can dominate any opposition in all the formats. He was always a great ODI player. But during the 2014 season, he took his T20 batting to a completely different level.

Without playing a lot of high-risk shots, he was scoring runs not only on a consistent basis but also at a brisk rate. He helped the team win a lot of games. He carried his form into the World Cup in 2014 and guided the team to the final, where they lost to Sri Lanka. In the final too, he scored 77 off 58 balls.

Something similar happened in the 2016 edition, where he looked to be dragging the side through the competition, single-handedly. The team lost the Semi Final to the eventual winners West Indies. Interestingly, Virat Kohli played an amazing innings scoring 89* off just 47 balls and also took a wicket in that match.

He won the man of the tournament award in both the tournaments. In the 2014 edition, Virat Kohli was the top scorer with 319 runs in 6 innings at an average of 106 and a strike rate just under 130. He had 4 scores in an excess of 50.

In the 2016 edition, he was the top scorer (excluding qualifiers) as he scored 273 runs in 5 matches, with 3 half centuries at an unbelievable avergae of over 126 and a strike rate of just below 147.