T20 World Cup 2022: List of all the Player of the Tournament winners from the previous editions

The eighth edition of the T20 World Cup is upon us, with the preliminary round scheduled to commence on Sunday, October 16.

Sri Lanka, Namibia, UAE, Zimbabwe, West Indies, Ireland, Scotland, and the Netherlands will battle for four spots in the Super 12 stage.

The highly awaited Super 12 fixtures will get underway on October 22 with the opening clash being between Trans-Tasman rivals Australia and New Zealand in Sydney.

Since its inception in 2007, some of the greatest talents in the game have shone brightest at the T20 World Cups. Amidst the battle among the nations to get their hands on the trophy, certain players have always put their best foot forward, excelling for their respective nations.

The ICC recognizes the best player from a particular T20 World Cup campaign with the prestigious Player of the Tournament award. Interestingly, there hasn’t been any Player of the Tournament awardee from the two-time world champions, West Indies.

On that note, let’s take a look at all the Player of the Tournament award winners from the previous seven editions of the T20 World Cup.

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T20 World Cup 2007 - Shahid Afridi (Pakistan)

Pakistan v India - Twenty20 Championship Final

Pakistani legend Shahid Afridi won the Player of the Tournament award during the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup held in South Africa in 2007.

While the former Pakistani skipper was famously known for his hard-hitting batting abilities, it was Afridi’s brilliant performances with the ball that made him a match-winning all-rounder at the 2007 tournament.

Afridi was the joint second-highest wicket-taker in the 2007 T20 World Cup, bagging 12 scalps at an average of 15.6. His batting strike rate of 197.8 was also the best among all batters in the tournament.

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T20 World Cup 2009 - Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)

Sri Lanka v West Indies - ICC Twenty20 World Cup Semi Final

Despite his side failing to win the final of the T20 World Cup 2009, Sri Lankan batter Tillakaratne Dilshan had a blistering tournament in England.

The right-handed opener gave Sri Lanka fiery starts in almost every game of the tournament, playing some flamboyant and fearless knocks.

Dilshan ended the tournament as the leading run-getter with 317 runs in seven matches at a mind-boggling average of 52.8 and a strike rate of 144.7.

Dilshan also smashed three half-centuries in the T20 World Cup 2009, with his best score of 96* coming against West Indies in the semi-finals.

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T20 World Cup 2010 - Kevin Pietersen (England)

Kevin Pietersen after winning the ICC T20 Mens World Cup Final [Getty Images]

Just a year after the 2009 T20 World Cup, West Indies hosted the third edition of the tournament, which was won by England.

England's most valuable player of the tournament was Kevin Pietersen, who batted at No. 3 and played some crucial knocks.

The former batter piled on 248 runs in six matches at a great average of 62 as he ended the 2009 T20 World Cup as the second-highest run-scorer.

Moreover, Pietersen scored a crucial 47 in the summit clash against Australia to help England win their maiden T20 World Cup crown.

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T20 World Cup 2012 - Shane Watson (Australia)

Australia v South Africa - ICC World Twenty20 2012: Super Eights Group 2

No other all-rounder made the kind of impact in a single edition that Shane Watson did during the 2012 T20 World Cup held in Sri Lanka.

He smashed 249 runs (the most in the tournament) at an average of almost 50 and at a strike rate of 150 while opening the batting for Australia.

Watson also bagged 11 wickets at an economy rate of 6.8 and was the second-highest wicket-taker behind Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis.

Despite Australia being knocked out by the eventual champions West Indies in the semi-finals, Watson was adjudged as the Player of the Tournament for his brilliant campaign with both the bat and ball.

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T20 World Cup 2014 and T20 World Cup 2016 - Virat Kohli (India)

Virat Kohli won the Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup twice in his career

The next two 20-over World Cups were dominated by none other than former Indian skipper Virat Kohli.

At the 2014 T20 World Cup, which was held in Bangladesh, Kohli was in ominous batting form. He became the player with the most runs in a single edition of the T20 World Cup, scoring as many as 319 runs at an astronomical average of above 106 in just six matches.

He almost single-handedly took India to the final, where they lost to Sri Lanka.

Two years later, Kohli came up with another stellar campaign at the 2016 T20 World Cup. He became the first-ever player to win two Player of the Tournament awards in the history of the competition.

Hosting the tournament, India were heavy favorites to lift the trophy. However, no other Indian player other than Kohli stepped up as the Men in Blue failed to get past the semi-final stage.

Kohli ended up as the second-highest run-getter in the tournament, amassing 273 runs at a ripping average of 136.5 in just five fixtures. He scored three half-centuries, with his unbeaten 89 against West Indies and 82* against Australia being the highlights.

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T20 World Cup 2021 - David Warner (Australia)

New Zealand v Australia - ICC Men's T20 World Cup Final 2021

David Warner won the honor on the back of some splendid batting exploits in the UAE last year.

Nobody could've predicted that the Australian opener, who had trouble scoring runs before the event, would end up as the T20 World Cup's best player.

Warner scored 289 runs in seven matches to finish the campaign as the second-highest run-scorer behind Pakistan skipper Babar Azam.

The southpaw scored his runs at an average of 48.16 and a strike rate of 146.70, and also struck three half-centuries, including a 38-ball 53 in the final to help Australia chase down a 173-run target against New Zealand to lift their maiden T20 World Cup trophy.

Given his understanding of the pitches in Australia and his penchant to lead his side from the front, Warner will once again be a hot favorite to win the Player of the Tournament award at the T20 World Cup 2022.