Sportskeeda Cricket Awards 2017: T20 captain of the year 

2017 has been a good year for Test cricket, it has also been a year when ODI cricket got a lot of boost, but then this year also saw the rapid strides made by the newest format T20 and if the trend continues, there should be no reason why 2018 would buck this trend.

Teams have become more settled in the shortest format, specialists are picked and entrusted to do the job, but amidst the galloping speed, the role of captains become all the more crucial.

The leaders of the teams have to think on their feet and they cannot rely on readymade plans and hence this format tests a captain comparatively more than the ODIs.

Here in this slider, we take a look at the top five captains who led their teams to glory by the astute and inspirational leadership across the board.

#5 Kane Williamson, New Zealand

In many ways, New Zealand cricket is still in the Brendon McCullum hangover, but it has to be said that Kane Williamson has managed to pick his team and stride ahead this year across all the three formats.

However, as has been the case with New Zealand over the years, they constantly try to punch above their weight with the resources they have at their disposal.

This year has not been very good but yes the record is respectable.

New Zealand have played seven matches and have won four out of them. Their win/loss ratio is 1.33 which is a decent enough number and Williamson deserves a lot of credit for these consistent performances.

#4 Virat Kohli, India

There is little doubt that the Indian team was the best in 2017 across all the three formats and their captain, Virat Kohli was a critical cog in the entire scheme of things.

From scoring runs himself, to inspiring his team members to put in their best foot forward, Kohli has managed to instill a sense of belief in the Indian team, a trait which will hold the team in great stead when the long overseas trip begins.

Before the Sri Lankan T20 series, when the captain was rested, Kohli had led India in 10 matches, out of which he triumphed in six contests.

The win/loss ratio reads a handsome 1.666 which only underlines India's dominance in the shortest format/

#3 Carlos Brathwaite, West Indies

The current world champions in the shortest format, West Indies continued to dominate T20s owing to their band of powerful stroke-makers and a group of specialist T20 bowlers.

New captain Carlos Brathwaite did a good job of managing his resources and never allowing his contingent to lose focus on winning games.

The Barbados-born man, who was given this role out of the blue has looked comfortable in managing his resources and this has reflected in the performance of West Indies.

They have managed to win six out of the nine games they played and the win/loss ratio is 2.33.

#2 Asghar Stanikzai, Afghanistan

The rise of Afghanistan cricket, from a bunch of free-spirited team playing cricket amidst the ruins back home, to being elevated to Test status has been one of the most romantic stories in the recent past.

Such has been their dominance in the cricketing world, that despite lacking basic infrastructure in their own country, many of their players are now much sought after commodities in the Twenty20 franchise market.

Their record in the shortest format has been stellar to say the least, and the credit should go to Asghar Stanikzai, their skipper who has taken over the job and has forged a strong outfit around him.

The Afghans played 10 T20 matches in 2017 and barring the 3-0 loss to West Indies, they have won the remaining matches.

Their win/loss ratio reads a mighty impressive 2.333.

#1 Sarfraz Ahmed, Pakistan

The most painful, and yet the most brilliant team across all the three formats has to Pakistan. The mercurial bunch of 11 players takes the field but there is absolutely no way anyone can decipher which team will turn up on the day.

However, this year has been a relatively consistent year for them and in Sarfraz Ahmed, they have a leader at the helm who is a source of inspiration for the rest of the guys.

Sarfraz has managed to create a strong nucleus around him and the results have generally been on the positive side.

They have won eight out of the 10 matches this year and with a win/loss ratio of 2.25, they have been the best side in 2017.