Indian Players To Win Man Of The Match On T20I Debut

Winning a "Man Of The Match" trophy while playing for Team India would probably be the dream of every player. However, it is something, for which you have to outperform pretty much every other player on the field, including your teammates as well.

To win the match on the match award, obviously, a player has to be the best among the 22 players that take to the field. However, in the past, there have been some Indian players who have achieved this feat on their debut itself.

Yesterday, Ravi Bishnoi has debuted against the West Indies in the ongoing T20I series at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. Ravi picks up 2 crucial wickets by giving only 17 runs in his four overs. In this article, SportzPoint will take you to the eight Indian players who have won the "Man Of The Match" award on their T20I debut.

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Dinesh Karthik | 2006

Dinesh Karthik won the "Man of the Match" award on his debut. Meanwhile, he won the award when the Indian team played its first-ever T20I match against South Africa in December 2006. For the first time in cricket history, team India played the Proteas in a 20-overs battle.

The Men in Blue chased down South Africa's 126-run target with one ball remaining. Dinesh Karthik, who made his T20I debut that day, was adjudged as the best among all the Indian players. He scored 31 runs off 28 balls and remained not out as well.

Pragyan Ojha | 2009

Former Indian leggie Pragyan Ojha made his T20I debut in Indian colors against Bangladesh on 6 June 2009. The Men in Blue batting first gave the Bangla Tigers a mammoth score of 180 runs to chase. However, they failed short of that target eventually. Bangladesh ended up with just 155 runs in reply to the Indian innings.

Debutant Pragyan Ojha starred for team India as he scalped four wickets in his spell, giving away just 21 runs. The 33-year-old was rewarded with the 'Man of the Match' award for a stunning display that helped India defeat their neighbors.

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Subramaniam Badrinath | 2011

After impressing one and all with his exploits in the Indian Premier League (IPL) season 4, Subramaniam Badrinath got selected for India's T20 squad for the West Indies tour in 2011. In the only T20I fixture, Badrinath scored 43 runs off 37 balls to help India defeat the hosts by 16 runs.

Badrinath was rewarded with a "Man of the Match" award for his performance, on his debut. The shocking thing here is that as Badrinath's maiden and also last T20I appearance for the Indian team.

Axar Patel | 2015

Axar Patel also features on this list of Indian players who won the "Man of the Match" award on their T20I debut. He made his debut against Zimbabwe on 17 July 2015. Team India in their innings, scored 178 runs at the loss of five wickets.

Zimbabwe, chasing a big total, could only score 124 runs in the allotted 20 overs. Axar picked up three wickets in his spell, giving away just 17 runs, as helped India restrict Zimbabwe, and was deservedly given the 'Man of the Match' award on his debut.

Barinder Sran | 2016

Another Indian player who won the "Man of the Match" award on his T20I debut against Zimbabwe, Barinder Sran first turned out for the Men in Blue on 20 June 2016. He helped India bowl out the opposition team for just 99 runs. In reply, they easily chased down the target in 13.1 overs without losing a single wicket.

In his four-over spell, Sran gave away just ten runs, whilst also amassing four wickets. He was adjudged as the best performer among all of the Indian players. However, the 27-year-old's career has undergone a downward spiral ever since.

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Navdeep Saini | 2019

Indian pacer Navdeep Saini has won the 'Man of the Match' award on his T20I debut. He achieved this feat against the West Indies, on 3rd August 2019. Saini picked up three wickets, in his four-over spell, giving away just 17 runs.

Meanwhile, which ultimately helped the Indian team to restrict the West Indies to a total of 95 runs. They chased down the target in 17.2 overs, at the cost of six wickets.

Harshal Patel | 2021

Indian pacer Harshal Patel won "Man Of The Match" award on his debut T20I game against New Zealand last year in Ranchi. That was India's second game of the series on 19 November 2021. Harshal picked up 2 wickets giving away just 25 runs in his four overs spell.

Meanwhile, Harshal helped his team to restrict the blackcaps within a chasable total of 153-6 in 20 overs. India chased down the target in the 18th over and won the match by 7 wickets.

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Ravi Bishnoi | 2022

A new player comes into the list yesterday when India clashes the mighty West Indies in their 1st T20I at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on 16 February 2022. Ravi Bishnoi took 2 wickets by giving just 17 runs in his four overs spell.

The wickets includes a LBW against Roston Chase. That's why he was given the "Man Of The Match" award on his debut T20I game for India. Bishnoi helped India to restrict their opponents in 157-7 runs and later chased it down with a stealer show from Rohit and Surya.