Bumrah honored for his performance in T20 WC and BGT, while Mandhana won for her record batting.
Indian cricket stars Jasprit Bumrah and Smriti Mandhana have earned top honor in the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack for 2024, released on Tuesday. They have been recognized as the world’s Leading Cricketers of the Year-Bumrah for men’s cricket and Mandhana for women’s cricket.
Despite India's defeat in the 2024–25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, Bumrah was a standout performer, ensuring his team remained competitive. He took 32 wickets at an astonishing average of 13.06. Over the season, his total Test wicket tally reached 71 at an average below 15.
Bumrah made history as the first Test bowler to secure 200 wickets at an average under 20. His brilliance in white-ball cricket was also crucial to India's victory in the 2024 T20 World Cup. His crucial 2/18 spell in the final placed South Africa under immense pressure.
Although South Africa was in a strong position needing 30 runs off the last 30 balls, Bumrah’s performance helped India clinch a thrilling win.
Wisden praised his impact, stating, "Indian cricket’s success depended largely—if not entirely—on one factor: whether or not he had the ball. Rarely has a cricketer dominated a year as he did in 2024."
Smriti Mandhana won Wisden’s Leading Cricketer in the World for 2024. She set a new benchmark by scoring 1,659 international runs in 2024, the highest by a woman in a single year.
Her stellar performances included a record-setting bilateral series against South Africa, scoring 117, 136, and 90 in ODIs, amassing a total of 343 runs. She also added 149 runs in a Test match.
Mandhana led Royal Challengers Bengaluru to their maiden Women's Premier League (WPL) title, further cementing her legacy.
Meanwhile, Wisden named Gus Atkinson, Liam Dawson, Sophie Ecclestone, Jamie Smith, and Dan Worrall among the Five Cricketers of the Year.