Top 5 current Asian batsmen in ODIs

Not so long ago, a lot of Asian teams were considered minnows by the other countries and their fans. They have since risen through the ranks and are now among the most dangerous and toughest teams to play against.

The Asian batsmen hold a lot of batting records and are known for playing fearless cricket irrespective of who the opponent is. Even the best of the best contemporary bowlers are not very comfortable bowling against Asian batsmen because they have mastered the art of batting.

Through the course of this article, we take a look at the top five current Asian batsmen in one-day internationals.

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#5 Tamim Iqbal

Tamim Iqbal has been performing consistently for Bangladesh

Tamim Iqbal is definitely one of the most successful batsmen to have ever played for Bangladesh. The southpaw plays aggressive cricket and has the ability to smash bowlers for runs all around the park.

He is the first Bangladeshi cricketer to score 10000 international runs and it is safe to call him the greatest opening batsman ever for Bangladesh. Tamim is the first batsman to reach 6000 ODI runs for Bangladesh.

Tamim has been performing consistently for the national team for quite a long time and his quick-fire performances at the top keep helping the team post huge totals. Tamim Iqbal holds the record for highest centuries in Bangladesh team jersey across all the formats with 20.

#4 Babar Azam

Babar Azam became the answer to the batting woes of Pakistan

Babar Azam is one of the most popular cricketers today. In a very short span of time, he has achieved so much and has become the answer to the batting woes of Pakistan. With Babar at number 3, Pakistan batting lineup has improved by leaps and bounds.

He is one of the most consistent batsmen in the world cricket today and is the backbone of the Pakistani team. Babar is the second joint fastest batsman to reach 1000 and 2000 ODI runs.

After 51 ODIs, Babar Azam has scored 2129 runs at a staggering average of 51.92, accompanied by 8 hundreds and 8 fifties. He is currently 6th in the ICC ODI batting rankings.

#3 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma can single-handedly win matches for the side

The Indian opener can time the ball with regal elegance and is currently one of the best in the business. He is known for his ability to change the outcome of the game single-handedly and is also one of the finest captains a team can ask for.

Along with Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit is giving solid and quality starts to Team India in ODIs. He led the team successfully as India won the Asia Cup 2018 and defended the title they won in 2016.

He can tonk the ball and is known for his love affair with double-centuries. On his day, he is a nightmare even to the best of the bowlers. Rohit is currently second on the ICC ODI Batting rankings.

#2 Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan is providing a solid start at the top for India

When it comes to ODI cricket, Shikhar Dhawan is currently one of the best openers in the world. He is churning out runs like a run-machine in the shorter format and was also the man of the series in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2018.

Dhawan's exploits at the top is giving the team much-needed confidence and is also setting the platform for other batsmen to come later and take India to a very high total. His presence at the top has strengthened the team and India currently boasts one of the best batting lineups.

With ICC World Cup 2019 not far away, India would love Dhawan to keep playing the same way. Considering the fact that Shikhar Dhawan was the highest run-scorer in ICC Champions Trophy 2013 and 2017, both of which happened in England, one can only expect Dhawan to come up big in the World Cup and help India clinch the title.

#1 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is the backbone of Indian batting lineup

The Indian dominance continues and this man has to be at number one spot on this list. The Indian skipper is arguably the greatest batsman of this generation. He has been in the form of his life for the past 5-6 years and he looks far from done.

Kohli is currently the number one batsman in ICC ODI batting rankings and is way ahead of everyone else. He is the mainstay of Indian batting and the team's success heavily depends on Kohli's personal credentials. Kohli has become a synonym to the word consistency and is scoring centuries for fun.

He is on course to break all the batting records established by the Indian stalwart, Sachin Tendulkar and when all is said and done, he will probably go down as the greatest batsman of all-time.