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Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world, Unfortunately, many cricketers have not earned the respect they ought to have.
These most underrated cricketers make vital impacts on cricket. But their more prominent peers have overshadowed them.
With that in mind, here are our picks for top 10 underrated cricketers who can surprise you in 2025.
10. Noor Ahmad | Afghanistan
Afghanistan's young left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad has been consistently proving himself in the international cricket and is considered as, 'Rashid's mirror image'.
In IPL, he has 24 wickets in 23 matches, including an impressive 16-wicket haul in the 2023 edition.
Noor has gone on to become one of the most impactful spinners in the shortest format of the game.
For the past two years playing along with his Afghan teammate in the same franchise, his performances have been unnoticed, but in the coming season, he has a chance to once again create havoc with his bowling.
Noor featured in two U-19 World Cups for Afghanistan - in 2020 and in 2022. In the 2020 edition, in South Africa, he claimed seven wickets in five games with an economy of 3.93.
Whereas in 2022 in West Indies, he played a key role in guiding Afghanistan to the semifinals.
He emerged as the joint second-highest wicket-taker with 10 scalps in six outings.
Noor made his T20I debut on 14 June 2022, against Zimbabwe.
9. Harry Brook | England
A name that won’t be familiar to cricket fans outside of England, Harry Brook is an exceptional young talent.
Brook is an aggressive batter whose fearlessness has brought him immense success in T20Is and Tests alike.
Brook is slightly younger than many of his English contemporaries at just 25 and he’s been impressive for his county Yorkshire in all three main formats.
He already has eight Test centuries and one double century with a highest score of 317.
At a time when England are looking for multi-purpose batters who can adapt to all situations, 2025 promises to be a very important year in the career of Harry Brook.
8. Naseem Shah | Pakistan
At just 21 years old, Naseem Shah has already established himself as one of the fastest bowlers in world cricket.
His speed, often exceeding 145 km/h, combined with his exceptional swing bowling, makes him a formidable opponent for any batsman.
Naseem made his debut for Pakistan at the age of just 16.
He was the ninth youngest player to appear in a test match and he bowled with pace and hostility in that opening game against Australia.
He’s now claimed 127 international wickets, and if he can combine more accuracy with that pace, Naseem Shah can still have a big future in the game.
Naseem’s rise has been meteoric, and he’s expected to play an important role for Pakistan in ICC tournaments in 2025.
However, in 2023, the pacer got injured in Asia Cup and that ruled him out of the all-important 2023 World Cup in India and it proved to be a disastrous campaign for Pakistan.
7. Tristan Stubbs | South Africa
The big-hitting Protean, who captured everyone's attention with a 28-ball 72 against England back in 2022, could not convert his versatility and talent into consistency.
The year 2024 marked a complete turnaround in fortunes for the youngster who can switch gears with the bat effortlessly, bowl some useful off-break spin and keep wickets.
During Cricket South Africa (CSA) domestic four-day competition Division 1, he compiled a triple century for Warriors against KwaZulu-Natal Inland, making 302* in 372 balls, with 37 fours and six sixes.
Not only did he stay unbeaten for such a marathon effort, but also showed that red-ball cricket is just as safe as a T20 match for a modern-day batter to apply their audacity and stroke range truly.
Coming to international cricket, Stubbs is displaying a diverse array of strokes and ability to shift from one format to the other not seen since the days of AB de Villiers.
Both his reverse ramps, sweeps and marathon Test knocks remind fans of their most beloved cricketer and they look at him as a heir apparent to 'Mr 360'.
A middle-order batter in white-ball who can finish with some fireworks, Stubbs is shaping up to be Proteas' next ever-reliable number three batter who can weather any storm.
In 52 international matches, he has made 1,419 runs across formats, with three centuries and four fifties in 53 innings. His best score is 122*.
6. William O'Rourke | New Zealand
With the golden generation of Kiwi pacers: Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Neil Wagner and Matt Henry slowly riding into the sunset, Kiwis have a worthy heir to these stars in the form of William O'Rourke.
The 23-year-old, six-foot-six inch tall pacer took 40 wickets in 13 Tests at an average of 24.45, with best figures of 5/34.
He took two five-wicket hauls last year, against South Africa and Sri Lanka.
Also, a very crucial spell of his, figures of 4/22 against India in Bengaluru set up the tone for Kiwi's first-ever series win in India and India's first Test series loss at home in 12 years, a historic 0-3 whitewash.
In 10 Tests, he took 36 wickets at an average of 24.81.
5. Jacob Bethell | England
England has a fine pool of all-round talent across all forms of the game, with 21-year-old, blonde-haired Jacob Bethell being the latest edition to it.
Within four months, the youngster made his debut across all formats for Three Lions and has the makings of a future star, averaging above 50 in Tests and T20Is so far.
Handed a debut in the New Zealand Test series without a first-class cricket century, Bethell proved his doubters wrong with some audacious strokeplay and level-headed temper beyond his age, smashing three half-centuries in the series which England won.
Overall in 22 international matches and 23 innings, Bethell has made 674 runs.
He has scored seven fifties so far with the best score of 96.
With his useful spin bowling, Bethell has also taken seven wickets, with best figures of 3/72.
Bethell came into the team after a brilliant T20 Blast season with Warwickshire.
He made 361 runs in 12 innings at an average of 36.10 and a strike rate of above 153, with four half-centuries.
His best score was 71*. He also took six wickets at an average of 14.33.
4.Kamindu Mendis | Sri Lanka
Since the retirements of legends Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, the Lankan Lions have been looking for someone who can replicate the hunger for runs.
While he has delivered very few notable performances in white-ball cricket, his Test form suggests that it is only a matter of time before the left-handed finds comfort in coloured clothing too.
In nine Tests in 2024, Kamindu scoref 1,049 runs in 16 innings at an average of 74.62, and a strike rate of over 66.
He scored five centuries and three fifties, with the best score of 182*.
He tied with legendary Aussie batter Don Bradman as the second-fastest player to reach 1,000 Test runs in just 13 innings.
Kamindu also scored a fifty-plus score in eight successive Tests, which also were the first eight of his career, becoming the first player to do so.
Overall in 52 matches and 57 innings across formats, he made 1,895 runs, with five centuries and eight fifties.
3. Abhishek Sharma | India
For long, India have prayed for an aggressive, throw-bat-on-everything opener who can maximize the powerplay.
In a fresh and welcome change from accumulating ways of the past by Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, this 24-year-old opener from Punjab has the talent and hitting to dismantle any bowling attack.
Abhishek was Sunrisers Hyderabad's (SRH) second-highest run-getter and overall 10th.
He scored 484 runs at an average of 32.26, with three half-centuries in 16 innings, a best score of 75* and a strike rate of above 204.
His six count of 42 was also the highest in the tournament and he overtook legendary Virat Kohli's record for most sixes by an Indian in a single IPL.
Abhishek has made his international debut in 2024 against Zimbabwe after IPL.
Since then, he smashed at 535 runs in 16 T20I innings at an average of 33.44, and a strike rate of over 193. His best score was 135.
While Abhishek has a long way to go in other formats, India should invest in him as their next opener as he could very well be their best bet for leading a new, attack-oriented generation of T20Is, where scoring rates and sixes are top two priorities.
2. Saim Ayub | Pakistan
Some strong outings in Pakistan Super League (PSL) with Peshawar Zalmi in 2023 and 2024 and a breakout Caribbean Premier League (CPL) season with Guyana Warriors in 2023, Ayub was handed his debut in 2023.
He scored 478 runs and four half-centuries in 13 matches, averaging 43.45, striking at over 142.
Despite averaging just above 17 and striking at 123 with no fifty in his first eight T20Is, Ayub was not binned.
Rather, he received a strong backing from seniors. The result is a breakout year in 2024, with notable moments across all formats.
In 35 international matches last year, Ayub has scored 1,254 runs at an average of 33.00, a strike rate of over 89, with three centuries and five fifties in 41 innings and his best score being 113*.
He has outdone star batter Babar (1,134 runs in 35 matches with eight fifties) and is the second-highest run-getter for Pakistan.
It is his ODI stats that look the most attractive.
In nine matches, he has made 515 runs at an average of 64.37, with a strike rate of above 105.
He has scored three centuries and a fifty, with the best score of 113*, with two of them coming in South Africa that paved the way for a landmark clean sweep for Pakistan under Rizwan.
1. Nitish Kumar Reddy | India
The 21-year-old all-rounder's rise has been one of the heartwarming stories of last year.
With his parents, particularly his father, sacrificing heavily on personal and professional front for their son's cricket, Reddy has paid them back in plenty during his first few months as an international player.
After a breakout IPL 2024 season with Sunrisers Hyderabad, scoring 303 runs in 13 matches with two fifties and taking three wickets, Nitish made his India debut against Bangladesh in October.
He slammed 74 of 34 balls, with four boundaries and seven sixes in his second match.
After being selected into the Indian squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy despite his inexperience and not-so-exciting red-ball stats, he proved his doubters wrong with a dream series so far.
He had made 294 runs in four matches and seven innings at an average of 49.00 and three wickets, including some fiery cameos and a memorable century at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) during the Boxing Day Test.
Whether Nitish emerges as a strong pace-bowling all-round backup to Hardik Pandya is something only time will tell, but there is a lot of promise.
