Virat Kohli named Wisden's Leading Cricketer in the World for 2016

India skipper Virat Kohli on Wednesday, was named Wisden’s Leading Cricketer in the World for 2016, thereby adding yet another feather to his cap in a year that has been punctuated with several awards, brilliant displays with the bat, and leading his side to top of the Test rankings, reported PTI.

Kohli amassed 1215 Test runs at a stupendous average of 75.93 last year. In 10 One-Day International appearances, the 28-year-old made 739 runs at a whopping 92.37. His magnificent run of form continued in the shortest format of the game too, where he scored 641 at 106.83. He also had a phenomenal season in the Indian Premier League, scoring 973 runs, which included four hundreds.

Only six batsmen have ever scored more international runs in a calendar year than Kohli but none of them have come close to his average.

“Virat Kohli, who features on the cover of the 2017 edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, is also the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2016, an accolade put in place in 2003 when Ricky Ponting became the first honouree,” Wisden announced.

Last month, Kohli was awarded with the prestigious Polly Umrigar award presented to the “International Cricketer of the Year” at the Board of Control for Cricket in India Annual Awards. Kohli has already been declared Wisden India Almanack’s Cricketer of the Year for the second time in its 2017 edition. The Indian skipper was also awarded the Padma Shri in March.

Two Pakistani cricketers – Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan – have been named in the list of the five Cricketers of the Year for the first time since 1997. With Misbah and Younis making the list, the total number of Pakistanis to have been chosen Cricketers of the Year shot up to 14, just one short of India’s overall tally of 15.

Australia all-rounder Ellyse Perry was named the leading Woman Cricketer in the World.