Even though cricket is just another sport, it is much more than mere batting, bowling and fielding. Especially in India where cricket has become more of a religion, the sport affects almost every generations in some way or the other.
With the emergence of a commercial aspect to the game, cricket has gained immense popularity in many countries.
In today’s generation, we judge cricketers not just on their ability to bat and bowl but on their looks and glamour.
Even in the yesteryears, we had come across some extremely handsome cricketers who had created a sensation with their looks. With more and more cricketers entering the modelling industry in the recent times, we get to see some of the most sexiest and charming cricketers on screen almost daily in television and newspapers. Having said that it becomes very important to keep a look at some of the most handsome hunks of the Gentleman’s game who have made people, especially girls drool over their charm and looks.
While we have come across many good looking and charming cricketers some have blown our heads with their dashing looks. While some may find fault with the names of the selected players but it`s simply impossible to include every handsome cricketer in the XI.
Here we bring you the Most Handsome Cricketer’s XI of all time (According to batting order)
1 Shahid Afridi
“Boom Boom Afridi might just be the hottest ever cricketer Pakistan has seen. The flamboyant all-rounder has been an integral part of the team from a decade and a half. He held the record for the fastest ODI century till very recently until it was broken by Corey Anderson in 2014.
Afridi has been the brand ambassador or has starred in television ads for Star Marketing (Real Estate Marketing), Habib Bank, Pepsi, O Mobile, Mobilink, Rado, Samsung Electronics, Head and Shoulders, Boom Boom and Haier. His iconic status, especially in Pakistan, makes him the perfect choice for brand endorsements in order to appeal to the masses.
Afridi is one of the attractive cricketers around and he has been a heartthrob of girls all over the world. He also holds the record for maximum numbers of sixes hit in ODI cricket. Due to his aggressive style of batting, he has been a crowd favourite for many years. The player has also provided Pakistan the much-needed balance and stability with his bowling especially in ODIs.
The swashbuckling all-rounder has represented Pakistan in 398 ODIs and 82 T20Is. He has also appeared in 27 Tests.
2 Alastair Cook
England Test captain Alastair Cook is one of the most handsome cricketers around. The stylish opener has been a prolific run scorer in Tests and has been an integral part of the English team.
Cook has beautiful eyes which can mesmerize cricket fans all over the world. Making his debut for England way back in 2006 against India, Cook has been a consistent performer for the Test side. He has already scored over 10,000 runs in Test cricket with an impressive average of 47 and he might end up being the highest run scorer in Tests by the time he calls it a day.
3 Ahmed Shehzad
An aggressive right handed batsman, Shehzad is a darling of the Pakistani girls due to his attractive looks and is arguably the best looking Pakistani cricketer after Shahid Afridi. He is also the brand ambassador of “Boom Boom” since 2011. An immensely talented batsman, Shehzad hasn’t really realized his potential in international cricket and is a much better cricketer than his records suggest especially in ODIs.
After a successful U-19 World Cup campaign in 2008, Shehzad made it to the Pakistan Test squad for the infamous home series against Sri Lanka in 2008-09. He made his ODI debut in April 2009 against Australia. The cricketer provided a brisk start to Pakistan on quite a few occasions but wasn’t able to replicate his heroics on a consistent basis which led to his ousting from the team.
Unless he performs exceptionally well in the domestic circuit, he doesn’t seem to be in the future scheme of things for Pakistan, especially in Test cricket.
4 Michael Clarke
The former Australian captain is one of the most charming faces in the cricketing fraternity. Making his debut in 2003, the stylish batsman took Australia to greater heights. Replacing Ricky Ponting as Australia’s captain, the right-handed batsman led his country to the fifth World Cup title in 2015, beating New Zealand in the final at Melbourne. Clarke is also one of the richest cricketers and was the brand ambassador of Gillette and Rawlings during his playing days.
On 22 November 2012, Clarke became the only batsman to score four double centuries in a calendar year during his brilliant knock against the Proteas at Adelaide. In 115 Test matches Clarke has played for the nation, he has accumulated 8,643 Test runs at a healthy average of 49.1. He retired from international cricket after Australia surrendered the Ashes to England in 2015.
5 Virat Kohli
The current Indian Test captain is one of the hottest cricketers around and is quite a sensation among girls of the modern generation. He has been a prolific run scorer for India across all formats and has been their mainstay in the middle order. The Delhi lad has already hit 25 ODI centuries in his career so far and it won’t be a surprise if goes on to break all batting records until he calls it a day.
Kohli is someone who is known to make huge income from endorsements around INR 17 crores. He evidently charges Rs.2 crore per day. All the brands have the option of either hiring him on a daily basis or sign a yearly contract with him.
“Kohli signs contracts for about 3 days with per day charge of Rs 2 crore, equivalent to cricket legend, Sachin. Brands utilizes those three days in photo shoots, press briefings along with other appearances,” said a brand consultant who negotiates with Kohli’s brand manager on behalf of advertisers. Kohli is currently the ambassador of many popular brands and some of them are Reebok, Cinthol Deo, Godrej, Head and Shoulders etc.
Kohli led India U-19 team to a famous World Cup victory in 2007 and was subsequently bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore in the inaugural IPL. Since then there has been no looking back for Kohli. He is also an active member on the social networking site and keeps his fans updated with his latest whereabouts.
6 Kevin Pietersen
The South African-born England cricketer is one of the hottest hunks in the cricketing fraternity. He was a consistent run scorer for England before controversial issues led to his ouster from the team. In his debut series against Australia in 2005, Pietersen was at his imperious best with the bat during his debut series against Australia in 2005 and also made headlines with his funky hairstyle. He was audacious both with his strokeplay and his style statement. His funky golden streaks were the highlight of his career during his early days.
In 2012 there was a fallout between Pietersen and his teammates after reports suggested that the star batsman had sent text messages to the rival South African players making derogatory comments, especially against the then English captain Andrew Strauss. He was subsequently dropped from the squad and only made a return to the English side after the retirement of Strauss.
The stylish right-hander scored a brilliant 180 in spin-friendly tracks of India in 2013 that laid the foundation for a famous 2-1 series win for England but his rift with the board continued and he was dropped from the team and didn’t play for England again. Despite having a controversial career he remains one of the most popular faces in cricket.
7 David Gower
One of the most elegant left-handed batsmen of all time, David Gower was one of the charming faces during his playing days. There is something inherently graceful about the way a left-hander plays and Gower was a perfect example of a batsman who made batting look ridiculously easy.
Gower was one of the most prolific run scorers in English history and is the fourth highest run-scorer for England in Tests only behind Alec Stewart, Graham Gooch and Alastair Cook. Gower appeared in 117 Test matches for England scoring 8,231 runs at an average of 44.25. A beautiful timer of the ball, Gower played his farewell test against Pakistan in 1992 to bring down the curtains on an illustrious career.
8 Imran Khan
The dashing Pakistani all-rounder turned politician was one of the handsome cricketers during his days and made his fans drool over his aura and charm. Imran Khan led Pakistan to a famous victory in the 1992 World Cup. Imran had earlier retired after the 1987 World Cup but was requested by the then Pakistan President Zia-ul-Haq to return as a captain of the national team for the 1992 World Cup on public demand and the rest is history.
He handled his troops to perfection and guys like Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, one of the greatest fast bowling duo of all time flourished during his tenure as a captain. He was one of the most respected and popular figures in the Pakistan dressing room.
He represented Pakistan in 88 Tests and 175 ODIs taking 362 and 182 wickets respectively. He was an able batsman too, scoring over 3,500 runs in both Tests and limited overs cricket. In January 2015 Imran married British-Pakistani journalist Reham Khan in a private Nikah ceremony at his residence in Islamabad before announcing their intentions to file for divorce within nine months time.
9 Brett Lee
One of the fastest bowlers of all time, Brett Lee made his debut for Australia in 2000. He is among the most charming cricketers of all time and is a heartthrob of fans across the world. Lee was a vital member of the Australia team during his playing days and forged a solid bowling partnership with Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie.
Very recently Lee made his acting debut in the Indo-Australian film “Unindian” opposite Tannishtha Chatterjee. The film was mostly shot in Sydney and got a good response from the Indian box office after its release on 19 August 2016. The former fast bowler is also a part of the rock band Six and Out. He plays the bass guitar or acoustic guitar for the band.
Lee represented Australia in 76 tests and 221 ODIs and finished with 310 and 380 wickets respectively. He played his final Test for Australia in 2008 and announced his ODI retirement in 2012.
10 James Anderson
Arguably the greatest fast bowler England has produced, James Anderson has been a revelation for the England team ever since making his debut. He is also one of the most attractive cricketers around and is known to be a popular figure among girls. He has an uncanny ability to swing the ball both ways and is also one of the best exponents of reverse swing. Anderson is also the brand ambassador of Brut Sports Style and Wellman’s No.1 vitamin for men.
During the initial six years of his career, the best way to sum up his bowling was when he was good he was too good but when was bad he was horrible. But with time he matured and became the most important bowler for England. He hasn’t been a part of the current English ODI setup and last played for England in coloured clothing back in 2015.
Anderson is the highest wicket-taker for England in Tests with 463 scalps to his name in 117 Tests. He also has 269 wickets in his kitty in 194 ODIs.
11 Shane Bond
The former Kiwi speedster was a nightmare to most batsmen during his prime and made the ball talk with his brisk pace and swing. Though injuries brought a premature end to his international career, Bond was the best Kiwi fast bowler in the post-Hadlee era. Bond was also one of the hunky and stylish cricketers during his time and was a very popular figure among fans.
At times it seemed injuries would get the better of his career and the most serious of them was the back problem he sustained in 2003 that led to his isolation from cricket for two years after an operation in which he was fused with titanium wire.
There was also various other issues with knees, feet and many other parts of his body but Bond’s urge to play could never be questioned. His unwillingness to reduce his pace and take things easier might have prevented him from playing a couple of more years at the highest level.
