The former Indian captain and the superstar of world cricket Virat Kohli holds the record for the most Man of the Match awards in the history of T20 World Cups. He has won seven Man of the Match awards in all. Kohli has been playing at the T20 World Cup since the 2012 edition and has been a bonafide superstar of the game. Not only does he have the most player of the match awards, but he also has the most runs in the T20 World Cup history.
The T20 format is the most popular in world cricket and has also been picked by a number of countries who generally are not much into cricket. The most coveted prize of T20 International cricket is the T20 World Cup which generally happens once every two years. To claim a player of the match award in this tournament is a matter of great pride.
So, let’s take a look as to who are the players with most man of the match awards in T20 World Cup history.
List of Player of the Match awards in T20 World Cups
| Player | Team | Matches | Man of the Match Awards |
| Virat Kohli | India | 31 | 7 |
| Chris Gayle | West Indies | 33 | 5 |
| Mahela Jayawardene | Sri Lanka | 31 | 5 |
| Shane Watson | Australia | 24 | 5 |
| Adam Zampa | Australia | 18 | 5 |
| AB de Villiers | South Africa | 30 | 4 |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan | Sri Lanka | 35 | 4 |
| Shahid Afridi | Pakistan | 34 | 4 |
| Shakib Al Hasan | Bangladesh | 40 | 4 |
| Charith Asalanka | Sri Lanka | 16 | 3 |
Virat Kohli (India) – Seven awards
The former Indian captain Virat Kohli leads the list when it comes to most man of the match awards in the history of T20 World Cups. He has won the award seven times. Kohli has played many important knocks at critical times in the tournament. Be it the unbeaten 72 against South Africa in the semi-final of the 2014 T20 World Cup or his 82* against Pakistan in the 2022 edition, Kohli took home the player of the match award on a number of occasions. He has also won the player of the tournament award once.
Chris Gayle (West Indies) – Five awards
The Universe Boss Chris Gayle is second on the list for the player with the most man of the match award at the T20 World Cup, having won it five times. In the first match of the T20 World Cup 2007, he scored 117 and while his team lost, he took home the player of the match award. Gayle has hit the most number of sixes in the tournament and played in the editions from 2007 to 2021.
Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) – Five times
Mahela Jayawardene has also won the Man of the Match award five times in the tournament. For the longest time, he was the highest run-getter at the T20 World Cup but was recently overtaken by Virat Kohli. Jayawardene has played many important knocks in the tournament. He won the award for the century he scored against Zimbabwe in the 2010 T20 World Cup. He was also part of the Sri Lanka side that won the T20 World Cup in 2014.
Shane Watson (Australia) – Five times
Shane Watson has won the Man of the Match award eight times in T20Is and five of those occasions were at the T20 World Cup. A few of his performances for which he won the award was in the 2010 edition when he scored 81 against Pakistan. His 51 and 3/26 against Ireland in the 2012 World Cup was also critical.
Adam Zampa (Australia) – Five times
Adam Zampa has played only 18 matches at the T20 World Cup and has already won the Man of the Match award five times. That is a tremendous conversion rate which is rarely seen in such big events. Zampa most recently won the award when he picked 4/12 against Namibia in a T20 World Cup. He also took 2/28 against England earlier in the competition.
AB de Villiers (South Africa) – Four times
The South Africa legend has won the Man of the Match award four times at the T20 World Cup. His first award at the T20 World Cup was in the 2009 edition against Scotland where he scored a mind-boggling 79* off just 34 balls that led to a South Africa win. In the 2014 edition, he received the award for his scintillating 28-ball 69 not out versus England that helped South Africa post a massive 196/5 and win by three runs.
Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka) – Four times
Tillakaratne Dilshan has won the Man of the Match award four times in the T20 World Cup. He has won this award five times in T20I cricket and four of them came in the World Cup, which shows how much of a big match player he was. Dilshan first won the award for his 46 against Pakistan in the 2010 edition, and also won against New Zealand in the 2012 World Cup. Dilshan is high up the list for hitting most fours in T20 World Cup cricket.
Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) – Four times
Pakistan legend Shahid Afridi has also won the Man of the Match award four times in the T20 World Cup. His most important contribution came in the final of the 2010 T20 World Cup where he took Pakistan to a title win. Afridi scored 54 off 40 balls and also picked a wicket. He also won the award in the 2016 edition against Bangladesh.
Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh)- Four times
Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan is just one of two players to have played all editions of the T20 World from 2007 to 2024. He has won the player of the match award four times in the T20 World Cup. Some of his standout performances include 3/8 against Afghanistan at the 2014 edition of the World Cup and more recently his unbeaten 64 against Netherlands at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Charith Asalanka (Sri Lanka) – Three times
Sri Lanka batsman Charith Asalanka is the tenth name on this list. He has also won the award three times. He scored a fabulous 80* at the 2021 T20 World Cup and won the award. Then in the group game against Netherlands at the T20 World Cup 2024, Asalanka again scored a vital 21-ball 46 that took Sri Lanka to a win.
List of Man of the Match winners in T20 World Cup finals 2007-2024
| Year | Player | Team | Contribution in final |
| 2022 | Sam Curran | England | 3/12 |
| 2021 | Mitchell Marsh | Australia | 77* off 50 balls |
| 2016 | Marlon Samuels | West Indies | 85 not out off 66 balls |
| 2014 | Kumar Sangakkara | Sri Lanka | 52 not out off 35 balls |
| 2012 | Marlon Samuels | West Indies | 78 (56) & 1/15 |
| 2010 | Craig Kieswetter | England | 63 off 49 balls |
| 2009 | Shahid Afridi | Pakistan | 54* (40) & 1/20 |
| 2007 | Irfan Pathan | India | 3/16 |
FAQs
Who won the Man of the Match in the 2022 T20 World Cup final?
Sam Curran for his 3/12 off four overs was the Man of the Match in the 2022 T20 World Cup final against Pakistan. England ended up winning their second T20 World Cup title. Curran was also named Player of the Series for his all-round show.
Who has won the most Player of the Match Awards in the T20 World Cup?
India’s stalwart Virat Kohli heads the list for most Player of the Match awards in T20 World Cup cricket with seven.
Who got the most Player of the Match Awards in overall T20 Cricket?
Believe it or not, but Universe Boss Chris Gayle heads the list for the most player of the match awards in T20 cricket. He has won the award 60 times. Second on the list is AB de Villiers with 42 man of the match awards.
How many times has Virat Kohli won the man of the match award in T20s?
Virat Kohli has won the player of the match award 36 times in a total of 394 T20 games that he has played.
