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The history of cricket has witnessed numerous spine-chilling moments across all formats of the sport including Test, ODI and T20Is. Apart from fuming cricket rivalries, cricket aficionados really look forward to close matches where the ultimate result depends on the last over of the match. Over the years, there have been numerous matches that have gone down till the very last over and sometimes even till the very last ball of the match keeping the fans entirely hooked on the game. Numerous batsmen have delivered match-winning innings and their formidable strokes in the last over have assisted their teams in defeating the opponent teams on the ground.
Let’s have a look at the top five best match-finishers who have left a mark in the history of cricket
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Mahendra Singh Dhoni – India
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Legendary former Indian cricketer, Mahendra Singh Dhoni often hailed as “the best finisher in the world” has made countless contributions in establishing the Indian cricket team as one of the most formidable cricket squads in the world. Dhoni’s glorious cricketing career is filled with numerous instances where “Thala” finished off in style.
The third ODI between India and Sri Lanka in 2005, marked the advent of the magical-finishing era of MS Dhoni where he smashed a total of 183* runs off 145 deliveries. Additionally, the Tri-Series final against Sri Lanka in 2013 was no different for Thala. The captain cool kept his calm in the low-scoring thriller for India and smashed a total of 16* runs in the last over leading India to a sensational Tri-nation series victory. Furthermore, Dhoni’s iconic style of being a classic match-finisher also led India to a phenomenal victory at the Asia Cup 2016 finals against Bangladesh.
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AB De Villiers – South Africa
One of the greatest cricketers to ever represent South Africa in international cricket formats, AB De Villiers often referred to as “Mr. 360” is second on our list of top five best match-finishers. AB De Villiers clinched numerous titles and honors including ICC ODI Player of the Year thrice, Wisden Cricketers of the Decade at the end of 2019 and many others in his 15-years long glorious international cricket career. AB De Villiers has been prominently known for his formidable chasing abilities even in the high-pressure situations. A former key player of the South African cricket team, AB De Villiers has delivered several iconic match-winning innings including the most iconic 162* runs off just 66 deliveries in the South Africa vs West Indies ODI (2015).
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Virat Kohli
The ultimate and one of the most reliable chase masters of the Indian cricket team, Virat Kohli has established himself as one of the finest match-finishers as well. A few of Virat Kohli’s most memorable match-finishing innings include 82* runs off 53 deliveries at India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2022, 74* runs off 42 deliveries at India vs South Africa T20 World Cup 2014, 94* runs off 50 deliveries at India vs West Indies 2019 T201 Series, 70* runs off 29 deliveries at India vs West Indies 2019 T20I series and the most recent 79* runs off just 59 deliveries against South Africa in the finals of 2024 T20 World Cup Final.
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Michael Bevan
Often hailed as one of the greatest Australian match-finishers, Michael Bevan has successfully led the Aussies to a formidable streak of victories with his stellar match-winning innings. One of the most memorable match-finishing innings from former Australian cricketer Michael Bevan includes his 78* runs knock against West Indies at the 1995-96 World Series where Australia was initially struggling to stay in the game for a total of 38* runs off 6 wickets, Michael Bevan’s dominating innings against West Indies led the Aussies to an unanticipated victory.
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Jos Buttler
Joss Buttler made his debut for the England cricket team back in 2011 and has been considered as one of the greatest and most reliable match-finishers for the English cricket squad ever since. Jos Buttler’s ability to rule the international cricket format was proved with his impressive innings at the third test match against India in 2018 where he smashed a total of 85* runs. England’s white-ball captain, Joss Buttler scored a total of 204* runs in the most recent 2024 T20 World Cup and also, made a record as he scored 22 runs off 25 deliveries in the T20 World Cup Super 8 match against West Indies and took his total tally of T20 international runs to 2,952.
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